Glorious
by clayvessel14
Summary: As punishment for trying to discover Xemnas' true plans for The Organization, the sea-salt trio is sent to Earth with a sentence of: high school. Everything is going great until Heartless start showing up. Will they find the Keyhole before their new friends get hurt? Or will Earth be lost to the forces of darkness? (Barely romance, just crushes for comic relief)
1. Prologue

**Allllllright! My second story has arrived! I hope you guys like it even better than **_**A Kingdom Hearts Christmas**_** (which you should totally check out after you read this if you want a laugh) Once again, I do not own KH or any of the characters associated with it. In this story, there will be some OCs and I do own those! So without further ado…**

**Prologue**

Axel, Xion, and Roxas sat on the hard gray bench across from Xemnas' desk. The incident wasn't important enough to be held in the Round Room but it felt pretty darn serious to the offenders.

"Number Eight, Number Thirteen, and Number Fourteen…" Xemnas began, "You were caught snooping in the castle library's forbidden reports _**again**_. My patience is wearing thin. Therefore, you must be punished."

Axel opened his mouth to speak, Roxas gulped, and Xion stared at the floor. She'd tried to talk them out of it but Axel had eventually convinced her that Xemnas was definitely hiding something. So, they'd gone into the castle library late at night while everyone else was asleep. However, Zexion came in for some late night reading and caught them. They'd found no suspicious reports and worse- they were now being punished for sneaking around. Axel was angry, and was going to point out that Xemnas being so desperate to stop them from looking at the old mission reports just proved he was hiding something. But Roxas elbowed him in the torso to indicate saying something would just make everything worse.

"Saix agrees that a fair punishment would be… high school. On Earth. It is the most brutal there. I regret having to do this to you however you have left me no choice."

Axel had memories of visiting Earth high school's before. What was the big deal? All they had to do was blend in for…

"Six weeks is the length of your sentence" Xemnas stated.

Six weeks would fly by. This was more of a vacation than a punishment! Roxas and Xion however, looked utterly terrified. Axel remembered that they wouldn't know what high school was. He stood up and put his hands on his hips.

"Well, let's get packing."


	2. Chapter 1

**So this is where the story really begins! Hopefully it makes you laugh while also intriguing you! Read, review, and enjoy!**

**P.O.V. Original Character: Kennedie**

I stared at the new kids. They were definitely…different. I was mostly looking at the tall red head- **but that's not important! **There were two kids (a boy and a girl) that looked to be around my age: fifteen. The guy with spiky hair as red as a fire truck looked like he should be a senior. Maybe a junior…maybe. The younger boy also had spiky hair, but it was shorter and he had longish golden bangs. Both boys would be a balloon animal's worst enemy with hair like that. The girl had short, choppy, black hair and deep blue eyes that matched her companion of equal height. As for Spiky McRedhead, his eyes were a piercing green…

"Gosh Kennedie! Stop staring! I swear there was **drool** coming out of your mouth!" admonished my best friend Alexis. She snapped me back to reality. I guess with the new kids just standing there doing nothing, time had seemed to slow down.

"I wasn't staring! I was simply…observing!" I said while smirking. Kennedie Fun Fact #1: I am a **horrible** liar.

"Riiiiiiight. Observing, while a tiiiiiny string of drool comes dribbling out your mouth. Dribble dribble."

"Oh my gosh I did **NOT **need the sound effects! You are so gross!"

She chuckled evilly.

I thought about the three people standing only twenty feet away from me. They had gotten on my bus four stops after I got on. I had never really noticed the house they were being picked up at before: a two story century home that was old and worn but still beautiful. The girl wore black skinny jeans and a plum sweater. It was still fairly warm out; there was really no reason to dress so covered up. The smaller of the two boys wore a black cotton hoodie and baggy dark wash jeans. Ugh, how I hate baggy jeans. C'mon man! At least wear a belt! Lastly, the eldest wore long red track shorts and a black muscle shirt. Not a particularly fashionable outfit, but it hinted at athletic ability. And, I will point out, he was the only one dressed for the weather. Oddly, they all had the same backpack: black with silver accents.

"Dibs" Alexis said firmly.

It took me a moment to comprehend what she was getting at: she was reserving the red head for herself!

"Oh no you don't! Nuh uh! I totally called dibs first!"

"You did NOT!"

"…in my head."

"Exactly. So, I call dibs."

"If you're so into him; why don't you go talk to him?" I challenged.

"Fine. I will. But you should've made your move on the bus 'cause I wasn't there. Now I'll just work my magical feminine charm!"

"Feminine. Right.," I mumbled, "Your idea of a good time is baiting hooks for your pro angler aunt."

She was already a few paces away, but she must've still been able to hear me because she yelled back,

"I heard that! And ripping worms in half _is_ a good time!" she defended. We were polar opposites, her and I; but we were the best of friends. She was a tom-boy that was about as petite as petite can get. She had dark blond hair that was always out of place and curious blue eyes. She liked things to be constantly exciting whereas I preferred order and a degree of predictability. We balanced each other out perfectly though, like sugar and salt in peanut butter. As for me, well I had hair the colour of a wheat field in summer and silvery blue eyes that were as round as an owl's. I was taller than the majority of girls my age and skinny, but not excessively so. Although being a girly girl at heart, I preferred hanging out with guys; less drama.

I trailed behind Alexis as she approached the strange trio and I tried to look confident. My height didn't make it hard. Just straighten up and _presto! _I was the picture of self-esteem. To my surprise, she approached the blond boy.

"Hi! I'm Alexis! Welcome to East Elgin Secondary School!"

The boy smiled nervously and said,

"Hi. I'm Roxas. This," he gestured to the girl, "Is Xion. And this-"

"I can introduce myself Roxas" interrupted McRedhead while laughing. I had no doubt that he _could_ introduce himself; he oozed confidence. If he crossed the line to cocky, he would be filed as "Annoying." The kid- Roxas- blushed in embarrassment. Holy cow, this guy was clearly the ringleader if he could make his friends blush at the drop of a hat. Perhaps a title change was in order: Spiky McIntimidatingPants.

"I'm Axel," he winked, "I'm an assassin. Get it memorized."

Roxas and Xion looked up at him in horror.

"Axel!" Roxas hissed.

"Relax Roxas! It's cool!"

"But-"

"I said **it's cool."**

Roxas still looked unsure, but he stopped objecting.

"Assassin," I said, "What is that, like a D&D thing?"

He looked caught off guard.

"A _what_ thing?"

"D&D. You know, Dungeons and Dragons?"

He looked at me blankly. I shrugged.

"It's a game. I don't know that much about it but… you seemed like the kind of **eccentric** guy who would play it." With hair that big and bold, the guy had to be some kind of gamer. Or like, totally obsessed with anime. (A/N: Not that there's anything wrong with those two things :P Don't want to offend anybody)

"So what grades are you all in?" questioned Alexis, keeping the conversation going.

"These two are in grade ten and I'm in grade thirteen." Axel said.

"So why even enroll here if you're technically done school?" I wondered out loud.

"To look after these two. They were homeschooled before so they don't have much experience with high school," Axel flexed an arm, "Gotta make sure no one picks on the homeschooled kids. Got it memorized?"

Thought #1: He probably works out

Thought #2: What is worth memorizing about anything he just said?

Thought #3: Officially filed under "cocky"… and "alright to look at"

Lexi chose that moment to have a little light bulb go off somewhere in her brain.

"Well Kennedie and I are in grade ten too! So we could show Roxas and Xion around the school!"

"Cool. Alright, I'll go for that. Whaddya say Roxas? Xion? Think you can give papa bear a little time to himself for once?"

Roxas playfully shoved Axel.

"Hey! I think we can handle it!"

"Alright then whaddya still doing standin' around here with me? Just getting my appearance memorized?"

Roxas rolled his eyes. Xion smiled and sighed, kind of like a laugh that didn't quite come out right. Yeesh, depressing much? Lexi smiled sweetly at Roxas.

"Ready to go?" she asked.

They nodded solemnly.

_Gosh, _I thought, _If you want to survive this high school, you're going to have to take the hint from your friend and lighten up!_

**So am I off to a good start? Get ready for chapter two which is coming soon! Some surprises await if you're patient and loyal! As always, have a swellegant** **day!**


	3. Chapter 2

**I hope you're all enjoying the story so far; I know I've enjoyed writing it! Don't have much to say this time around so as always, read, review, and enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Kingdom Hearts or any of the characters associated with it. (Although if I did, Sora would be a little less clueless ;)**

I thought Lexi was going to be disappointed that we left Axel behind and she didn't get a chance to act on her "dibs," but she seemed perfectly happy showing Xion and Roxas the school. Xion hadn't said anything the whole time; she just smiled and nodded occasionally. Roxas wasn't much better; mostly just speaking one word at a time or asking the odd question. Despite their silence, they seemed pretty happy. We were lucky our buses got to school half an hour before classes started in the morning; I had to admit, we had a **BIG** school. Or at least, I thought we did. I got lost without my map on the second day of school.

Kennedie Fun Fact #2: I am directionally challenged/ geographically impaired

We covered the whole school before the warning bell even went, signaling we only had five minutes before classes started. I could see by the looks on our newcomer's faces that they were overwhelmed.

"Hey guys," I said, "I know it seems like a maze at first, but I promise that after the first two weeks, you'll know your routes like the back of your hand."

Xion began examining the back of her hand. Roxas was more self-aware apparently because he discreetly lowered her hand with his, maintaining eye contact with me the whole time. Which meant of course, that he didn't notice Xion blushing. And I'm pretty sure it wasn't because of her investigation of the back of her hand.

"So now we have to go to math." Alexis reminded Xion.

Roxas had phys-ed for his first seventy-five minute long period. Me, Alexis, and Xion had math. I gave Roxas simple instructions to the gym, and then we girls went on our way. After taking our seats and listening to that day's announcements (yawn!), our teacher introduced a new concept. I got the gist of it, but would need some practice. To my surprise and delight, Mrs. DeMarie announced that we could work in partners or groups of three to practice getting the new concept- (NOT going to say "memorized"! I refuse!) anyway, getting the new concept uhhhhh… committed to memory! Yeah that's it! Lexi brought Xion over to my desk and we got down to work. It didn't take long to see that Xion was an **absolute genius!** She got the questions done before any of us (and_ correctly_, unlike me!).

"Xion you're amazing!" exclaimed Alexis.

Xion blushed.

"Thanks…"

"**SHE SPEAKS!" **I yelled.

Everybody turned in their chairs to look at me. Now it was _my_ turn to blush.

"Heh heh" I laughed nervously, "Sorry!"

A few stares lingered but eventually everyone got back to work. Xion helped us finish all our problems quickly so we had time to do what girls do best: talk! Lexi, being the ever invasive one, asked Xion TONS of questions!

"Did you dye your hair? Where are you from? How did you get so smart? Is Roxas your boyfriend?"

The poor girl tried to give answers that would satisfy my best friend, but the questions just kept coming. At least I learned that Xion's hair was naturally black, she was from a faraway place that we wouldn't know, she found math easy and had a lot of spare time to practice and she was _not_ dating Roxas. I finally felt bad for our new friend and said,

"Lex, maybe we should let the girl keep _some_ secrets!"

"What? I was just wondering some things!" she said was shrugging nonchalantly.

"When are you NOT wondering things!?"

We all laughed. Xion did too, surprisingly. And it wasn't just a half-hearted sigh/laugh, it was an actual laugh. It reminded me of tinkling bells.

"Sweet girl," I thought, "She's alright!"

While Alexis and Xion continued chatting, I stared at the clock, willing it to speed up time. It wasn't that I didn't like math, it was just that I enjoyed my other classes so much more. I let my mind drift, contemplating what I would buy for lunch, wondering how Roxas was doing with our grueling phys-ed program, and considering what Axel might be doing with his spare. How did I know he had a spare? Simple; his schedule had been poking out of the top of his gothic backpack and I could just barely see what his first period was. Suddenly I was snapped back to the real world by hysterical laughter from Alexis.

"What's so funny?" I demanded to know.

"She-she… bahahahaha!" Alexis tried to speak, but she was laughing too hard.

I turned to Xion.

"What is she laughing about!?"

"All I asked was 'If light travels faster than sound, is that why some people seem bright until they start talking?' And she just started laughing! That's all I said, honest! I don't know what's so funny!"

For a moment, I didn't react. Then…

"**BAHAHAHAHAHA!"**


	4. Chapter 3

**Just want to give a shout out to Minerva Star Shine to say thanks for your support and encouragement of this story! I'm so happy to see people are reading my stories! Here's hoping you enjoy chapter 3!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Kingdom Hearts or the (super-duper incredibly awesome) characters associated with it.**

We girls found Axel peering through the frosted glass of the gymnasium door at the end of class. He squinted his emerald eyes in an attempt to see better. Xion startled him when she spoke,

"Were you standing out here the whole time?"

"Well, yeah. I have a spare."

"A spare? What's that?"

"It just means I don't have a class to go to for first period. I only took the minimum amount of courses since I don't really have to be here."

She nodded in understanding. Just then, Roxas and his gym teacher came out the doors, almost smacking into Axel. He was short for an adult, but really buff; probably to make up for his height. His hair was buzzed and he reminded me of a bulldog.

"Sorry" muttered the teacher, who's name I should know but didn't.

"Axel!" exclaimed Roxas in delight.

Once Axel overcame his surprise at having almost been assaulted by the door, he returned Roxas' smile.

"Roxas, hey!"

The teacher responded to this small dialogue with a look of surprise. He looked at Roxas,

"_This _is the "Axel" you spoke of?"

"Yes sir."

The teacher regarded Axel questioningly.

"Forgive me for staring but,"

_I know buddy, _I thought,_ the hair threw me off too._

"But- you seem a bit young to be the legal guardian of here."

Axel raised a scarlet eyebrow at the mention of what I assumed was Roxas' last name. He spoke as though amused at first, but then sobered up,

"Well I'm over the age of eighteen so yeah; I'm Roxas' legal guardian. He's my cousin."

Wow. So that meant… Roxas didn't have any parents? Poor guy. But what about Xion? Did she live with them too? _She must, because she's seems pretty close with them and she got on the bus at their house, _I deduced. None of them had any parents. Well, maybe Axel did, but he obviously either couldn't live with them or didn't want to. No matter how I put it together in my brain, it made me feel pangs of sympathy.

"So you are Axel Twilightown then?" questioned the gym teacher.

Axel looked skyward, and then sighed in what seemed like resignation.

"Yup! That's me! Axel Twilightown! What can I do for ya?"

I couldn't blame him for being embarrassed by his last name; it _was_ pretty different.

"Well you see", Teacher Man began, "Roxas here is an extremely talented athlete. We are currently doing our wrestling unit and he beat every opponent he faced in no time flat!"

Teacher Man was getting excited now; he thought he'd found the next George St. Pierre apparently. Men: ugh, so barbaric sometimes.

"It is my opinion that he should get on some of the school's sports teams as soon as possible. It's still early in the year; he could easily make up for lost time."

Axel considered this. Then he said,

"I appreciate your interest in Roxas, but he's been dealing with a lot of change lately, you see."

I wasn't sure if Axel was exaggerating or making it up. He was talking strangely as if a kid had said,

"Would you like to smoke with us?" and he was replying with,

"No thanks, I just had one."

…except he really hadn't. It's that sickeningly sweet tone that you use when speaking to a young child or crazy person. The teacher nodded solemnly, totally buying it.

"Alright. I respect that." He looked down at Roxas and said, "Let me know if you want to join some teams later on. We'd be glad to have you!"

The teacher re-entered the gymnasium, leaving the five of us: Axel, Roxas, Xion, Alexis, and me. Lexi looked at me questioningly. I just shrugged. I didn't know what had just happened. Axel and Roxas could have just said "No thanks." These people were mysteries to me so far. Without a word Axel walked off down the hallway, and we followed like ducklings. Roxas made sure that he walked right next to his friend, matching his long strides. Man; those two were tighter than a teenage girl's skinny jeans! I could hear their conversation.

"Twilightown? Really? That's the best you could come up with?"

Axel sounded unimpressed. Roxas blushed, but then Axel seemed to think of something else.

"Did you really wipe the floor with those guys?" Axel asked excitedly.

"Well… yeah, I guess."

"Did you hurt them?" here Axel took on almost a fatherly tone, one that surprised and impressed me. I didn't think he was capable of responsibility. I hadn't known him for very long but it was just a hunch that responsibility wasn't his strong suit.

"…only one."

"Reeeeeally? I gotta hear this!" Never mind- gone was the fatherly tone. It was replaced with the excitement from before.

"He was just messing around with this smaller guy. So, I told him to stop, but he didn't. My next match was against him…"

"Soooooo?" Axel prompted.

"So I beat him."

"Aw! C'mon Roxas! Fill me in! What'd ya do?"

"Um, he was really off balance so I just kinda…pushed him. He fell and then I… kneedhimintheface." Said Roxas, finishing the last part of his sentence in a rush. Axel looked shocked. I was too! How incredibly primitive, barbaric, violent, merciless, and-

"Niiiiiiiice!" exclaimed Axel, "Flying knee to the shnoz!"

They fist bumped. I caught up to them in a flash.

"**NO! THAT WAS ABSOLUTELY **_**NOT**_** "nice"!"**

I swear they sweat-dropped.

"K-Kennedie, he was being really awful to that smaller guy!" defended Roxas.

Kennedie Fun Fact #3: I can be pretty scary when I want to be.

"What's the guy's name?"

"The bigger one or the one getting picked on?"

"The bigger one."

"B-Br…"

"Brandon?" I asked, having a light bulb moment.

"Yeah!"

Ugh. I knew exactly who he was talking about now. Knew, and despised him:Brandon Clam. What kind of person has the last name CLAM!?

"Never mind," I muttered, "You can beat _that_ guy up anytime!"

The guys looked surprised.

"Long story," I explained, "Long, horrible story."

**Let me know what you think! I'll be sure to post more soon! Stay swellegant!**


	5. Chapter 4

**So not to let you guys down, I've decided to update again! Don't forget to review! Even if you don't do that much, at least enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own anything that Square Enix does. Because if I did then Square Enix wouldn't own it. I would. Obviously. Anywayyyyy…**

After Axel responding with,

"We've got time," and a smirk, I used the ten minutes in between classes to tell Xion and the guys about why I couldn't STAND Brandon.

"Bet you wish he'd _clam_ up, huh?" said Lexi, assaulting us with her horrible pun.

I groaned. Although, she definitely had a point. That guy never shut up. Most of the time he was talking about how great he did at his last football/hockey game or how good-looking his new girlfriend was. It was astounding how he had any brains left with how many times he flicked his blond hair across his forehead each day. He was the picture of vanity and arrogance.

"So he actually made fun of you _in class_?" asked a horrified Xion.

I laughed inwardly. The look on her face was priceless! It was as if she just couldn't believe somebody could be so mean. I guess I'd gotten used to the cruelty of the world. I looked around casually, trying to locate Axel. Where was he? He wasn't behind us or in front of us. It was as if he'd just vanished. Most likely though, he'd gone to class. _Yeah, _I assured myself, _he went to class; that's it._

Kennedie Fun Fact #4: I am as observant as a mole…or some other blind animal

Next, we all had English; one of my favourite subjects and second only to the dramatic arts. Our teacher, , was someone I admired a lot. She was small and unthreatening with blond hair and warm brown eyes. And most importantly, she had a passion for what she did. Roxas apparently didn't notice, because he seemed bored and distant for the whole class. He stared at his desk, carving something into the top. There was no lesson today; we were working on speeches about having a sense of identity. Mrs,Milmine tried to encourage Roxas to write his speech but although he was not closed off, he did not even take out a pen. I'll admit, a sense of identity isn't the most riveting of topics but it wasn't _that_ bad. Xion wasn't much better because she all she did was gaze out the window and try to sneak glances at Roxas. I had to smile at that. She wasn't very subtle but it was cute. Roxas must've been really zoned out because he didn't notice her examining him. Lexi kept trying to talk to Roxas; at first about the speech but then about everything, _anything_ to get him to respond with more than one word answers. Eventually she gave up and encouraged Xion with _her_ assignment. As for me, I was completely focused. Well… maybe not _completely_ focused. I pondered the three new additions to our school while I worked. They were so peculiar! I really liked them, but it would take a long time to figure them out. How was Roxas such a talented fighter and yet not confident in himself? What did him and Xion have against a sense of identity, seriously! Roxas seemed pretty nice, with a good, strong set of morals. He only opened up to Xion and Axel. When he was around them, I saw a bit of what I hoped was the _real_ Roxas: outgoing, inquisitive, and loyal. Then there was Xion. She looked up to Axel (both figuratively and literally) but didn't have the same connection with him that she did with Roxas. If there's one thing I know, it's girls; and I knew right away that there was more than just quiet admiration in her eyes when she looked at Roxas. And Axel… well he was intriguing. He was surprisingly hard for me to read. I knew what I thought of the outside (no complaints there) but what was on the inside? Only time would tell.

**RIIIIIIIIIIINNNNNG!**

The bell went, signaling our freedom and the best part of the day: LUNCH!

As I exited the room with my new friends, I failed to notice the pair of glowing eyes looking at me through the window…

**Oooooooo spooky huh? What do you think is gonna happen? Review and give your predictions/ suggestions!**


	6. Chapter 5

**Hello readers and fellow authors! Here's another chapter of **_**Glorious**_** which I hope you will enjoy reading! It's going to be a bit short because I'm feeling lazy today. Sorry if the story's going a bit slow, I just want to get through a full regular day of school with the characters before moving on from the beginning part of the story.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own KH or the people in it**

"What **IS** this!?" exclaimed Roxas.

I laughed,

"It's poutine."

He shied away from our most popular cafeteria dish. I was as offended as if I'd cooked it myself!

"It looks more like the first syllable of its name sake…" he stated. I laughed a little and so did the other girls. Well, except the other gils didn't laugh _a little._ Lexi and Xion's laughter seemed quite forced to me and they were laughing significantly longer than was appropriate. I could understand Xion's motives, but Lexi? Axel was fighting a smirk and a facepalm. (I could totally tell, because I was too)

"It's a delicious blend of French fries, rich, thick gravy, and gooey cheese! Just try it!" I prompted.

Roxas looked at the poutine doubtfully. Apparently he was taking too long because Alexis impulsively grabbed a gravy smothered French fry and shoved it into his mouth. The end stuck out and a long string of cheese was feeling the effects of gravity. It was a rather comical sight: Roxas with a mouth full of French fry and cheese stretching towards the floor. His eyes were wide with shock and he had no choice but to chew. He munched thoughtfully, and then swallowed. Slowly, a smile spread across his face.

"Wow that was really great!"

"Told ya!" my best friend and I yelled simultaneously.

We high fived in success. Upon seeing Roxas dig into his poutine, Xion immediately started eating hers. Again I smiled. She wanted to please him so badly and he didn't even notice. How typical. Meanwhile, Axel sat quietly sipping his apple juice. This surprised me because before, I wouldn't have described _anything_ he did as "quiet". It wasn't that he talked a lot; it was just that he was so bold! Even his hair was loud, and it didn't even make any noise! (Or at least, nothing I could hear) How was he content with just his apple juice!? By lunchtime every day I was STARVING!

Kennedie Fun Fact #5: I LOVE FOOD!

"Why aren't you eating, Axel?" I questioned.

What if he was sick!? Or maybe… if he was the only "adult" in the house, and he was going to school, then welfare might be their only source of income. What if he was starving!? Or… OH MY GOSH! What if he had an eating disorder!? What if he couldn't even _**eat**_ anymore!? What if he was going to die!? What if-

"I had a big breakfast."

Oh. What if he had a big breakfast? Duh!

_I-feel-like-a-retard._ He had a big breakfast, that's all.

"Yeah, sometime **last week** it looks like!" cried Alexis.

"LEXI!" I admonished.

"Well he's **skinny!**"

Okay. So what if he was skinny? His waist was pretty narrow but he had broad shoulders and muscles that were…decent. I refused to give him any more credit than he deserved. He was cocky to the point of arrogance, which I already couldn't **stand!**

"Lex," I pointed out, "You're not exactly a sumo wrestler either!"

She shrugged in defeat. For the rest of lunch we chatted about random school stuff, our lives at home, hobbies etc. Xion liked reading (no surprise there) and Roxas liked video games and… well he stumbled over his words when naming his second favourite hobby so Axel filled in the blank with,

"Fencing. He likes fencing."

After that, Axel joined in the conversation, and I couldn't decide if that was a relief or a nuisance. When asked what his favourite pastime was, Axel scared me a bit with his answer. His bright green eyes lit up and he responded with,

"Lighting things on fire!"

Oooookayyyy. So he was a cocky, arrogant, daring _**pyro!**_ Fan-tastic.


	7. Chapter 6

**Hi everyone! Hope you're all doing well! Here's the next chapter! Only two more before the school day is over and I can move on with the plot!**

**DiZclaimer: (Anyone see what I did there? XD) I do not own Kingdom Hearts or the characters associated with it.**

My last two classes for the day were science and my favourite: the dramatic arts, otherwise known as drama.

Kennedie Fun Fact #6: I **lived** to perform and entertain.

There was really nothing else that compared to standing on a stage, bathed in light… and making people smile. I guess I _could_ be considered a theatre freak, but I didn't think there was anything really that freak**ish** about me. Sure maybe I dressed a little differently to stand out a bit, but it wasn't like I wore anything outrageous. However, there was the fact that any given word or phrase could send me off into a musical number. I guess that was a _little_ freakish. I just loved making people smile, that's all.

Roxas was the only one in our three-hours-ago-made group that had science class with me. As we walked down the crowded halls, I suddenly remembered what today was. It was the dreaded frog dissection day. I had spent the whole semester psyching myself up for this; and now it was here. I hated guts. Anything squishy or bloody or recently-dead; ew ew ew ew ew! We entered the classroom as everyone was taking their seats. Roxas chose an empty desk in the front row on the left side of the room while I took my usual spot in the second row, on the right side of the room. Our teacher stood at the front of the room glancing at the attendance list. The bell rang and he raised his bald head. He was a nice teacher, but seemed a little unaware of what teenagers were like these days. He gave kids the benefit of the doubt even when he really, REALLY shouldn't have. I knew that he was going to tell us who our partners were now. I crossed my fingers underneath my desk, hoping I wouldn't get paired up with Brandon. Thankfully this was my only class with him. Poor Roxas had to put up with him in gym too. Just then, my teacher looked like he had forgotten something.

"Class listen up! I have to go make some more photo copies of your instructions, so just sit tight for a couple minutes!" he said over the noise of kids desperate to continue talking about who-knows-what.

Oh no. He wasn't.

He left the room.

He totally was. _He just left thirty teenagers alone in the same room,_ I thought. Immediately the room erupted with chatter. I looked around to see what everyone thought of Roxas. The guys were sizing him up, surely wondering if he was a threat to their "macho"… or more importantly: their girls. Speaking of the girls; they were whispering frantically and giggling. Oh gosh. I knew that giggle. It was the same one that Xion did. They were all completely infatuated with Roxas. He was your classic blond haired and blue eyed "cutey". Yeah maybe he was cute, but he wasn't particularly striking. Apparently the girls disagreed with me. Striking. Now that was the perfect word to describe Axel. There was nobody at our school that looked like him. Absolutely nobody. ' My teacher's voice reached me as he walked into the room holding a stack of papers and addressed Roxas.

"Roxas isn't it?"

He was addressing Roxas while he passed out papers. Roxas nodded.

"Since you're new to East Elgin, would you like to choose your partner? Just this once."

Roxas swiveled around in his chair to look at everyone behind him. The guys seemed suddenly very interested in the floor tiles. The girls on the other hand, primped their hair, batted their eyelashes, and gave him sickeningly sweet smiles. Oh puh-leez. Did they actually think he would go for that? He didn't even look at them. Once he spotted me, he said,

"I'd like to work with Kennedie please."

Like air being let out of a balloon, I could feel the girls' hopes fizzle to nothing. My teacher smiled and winked good-naturedly.

"Good choice."

I was a good student, but I would be completely useless with this particular experiment. I sighed in relief that I wouldn't have to work with Brandon. My teacher checked his clipboard,

"I'll just make some slight changes to the partner groups since Kennedie is spoken for…there! Alright so Emily is with…" and he began reading off names. I tuned him out and instead listened to the voices behind me. One of them was Brandon's deep, but INCREDIBLY annoying voice,

"OH NO! Kennedie's spoken for! Whatever will we do!?" he said loudly, while feigning dismay.

This comment got a hearty laugh from his man-clique and even a few laughs from the popular girls. The water in my toilet bowl was deeper than them. To my surprise, Roxas turned in his chair so he was facing Brandon, and gave him a glare that could silence a comedian…and make said comedian move into his mother's basement. It was **that** scary. I would've NEVER guessed that he would be capable of such a look. And for the first time in the history of EVER, Brandon Clam **clammed **up. There was genuine fear in his eyes. I almost felt bad for him; Roxas must've hit him pretty hard. You could feel the tension in the air build. I guess Roxas decided to break the tension because he looked at me and gave a small, but encouraging smile. I gave a big smile back. At this point, teacher man had finished reading out the partner groups and said,

"Alright everyone, get with your partner and find yourself a frog!"

How could he possibly be so enthusiastic about cutting something open!? Roxas came over to my desk before I could make my way through the other kids to him. Neither of us said anything; we just made our way over to a frog dissection station. We had every gruesome tool we could possibly need for disemboweling an amphibian. The counters were high; designed for working while standing up. And there it was in its deceased glory: the frog.

"So what are we supposed to do?" asked Roxas.

"Well basically, we cut it open, take out its guts, and label them."

"Oh. What does that teach?"

"Um, I guess it shows us kind of what all living things look like on the inside. I don't think they'd let us cut open dead humans," I shuddered at the thought, "So frogs were their second choice apparently."

He nodded.

"So," I said hastily, "How about you do the gross stuff and I'll do the labeling along with the report?"

"Sure."

I heaved a sigh of relief. I didn't have to touch the frog. Hallelujah! I could handle watching Roxas as he carefully dissected our specimen, but I acknowledged that I couldn't do it myself. I walked him through the steps, very aware that multiple pairs of eyes were on us. Eventually my nosy classmates got bored and actually decided to get something done. Because of our combined effort, we were finished early and after our frog was inspected by , we enjoyed free time. Everyone else's conversations were in full swing, giving me an opportunity to get to know my quiet blond companion a little better.

"Thanks for earlier," I began, "You really shut Brandon up."

"It was no problem. Is he always like that?"

I shrugged, "Pretty much."

"Why does he say that stuff to you?"

"Your guess is as good as mine. Some people don't need an excuse to be rude and insensitive."

"Huh."

"Anyway, let's not talk about that; I can handle him. So… why`d you stop getting homeschooled?"

Roxas seemed startled by my question and started stammering,

"Well, uh, see, um, my parents…"

"Yes?"

"Died! Yeah-um, they died" he blurted.

I felt like an idiot for the second time today. How could I not have guessed? I said the first thing that came to mind,

"I'm so sorry."

He tried to laugh it off,

"Nah, it's fine."

"No really, I shouldn't have asked."

"So is Axel your closest relative then?" I asked gently.

"Um yeah, he's my…" he paused as if he was confused, "Cousin?"

He said "cousin" as if _I_ should know and correct him if he was wrong. Maybe it was grief from his parents clouding his mind, but something told me that wasn't it. He didn't seem the least bit upset by their deaths. It was as if he genuinely could not remember how he was related to Axel. And all his other relatives must be dead or unsuitable for him to live with if he was placed in Axel's care. What if they were like, in a gang or something and another gang was after their whole family? No way. This wasn't an action movie. I had to start thinking rationally. (After all, that was what I was known for…**that** and unexpected bursts of song) I decided to change the subject.

"So do you have a crush on Xion?" I asked bluntly.

He blushed until his face was as red as (I will NOT use Axel's name and/or hair in a metaphor!)

…a cherry.

"Ohhhhhhhh! You totally like her! You've got a thang for Xion!" I teased.

Roxas stared at the floor.

"Why don't you ask her out?"

"Out?"

"Yeah! You know, on a date!"

Dim recognition flickered in his blue eyes.

"Nah."

"Why not?"

"What if she says no?"

"Trust me Roxas, she won't. Not with the way she looks at you."

"The way she looks at me?"

I facepalmed. O-B-L-I-V-I-O-U-S.

"Never mind. Just ask her out."


	8. Chapter 7

**Sorry I haven't posted for a bit; I've been preparing for my brother's birthday and some other stuff. But now I'm back with a new chapter!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own KH or its characters**

***The teacher's name has been cut out for some reason, sorry! Trying to fix it!**

As soon as science class was over, the girls swarmed me.

"How do you know Roxas?"

"What's he like?"

"Are you guys dating?"

"Do you think he'd like me?"

"Can you get me a piece of his hair!?"

(Okay the last question threw me off too; it was some crazy chick. Not even joking, a padded room would have done her some good)

I tried answering the (normal) questions to the best of my ability as I waded through hordes of girls to get to drama class. The only time I had ever been this popular was right before exams started. After what felt like an eternity, I stumbled into the door of my favourite room in the whole school. I quickly slammed the door behind me in hopes that the remaining love-struck females would go to class. I leaned with my back against the door, feeling my heart pound in my chest. While I waited for my breathing to calm down, I surveyed the room, even though I'd been in it tons of times. It was double the size of the rest of the classrooms in the school, and all the walls were black. I know this might sound depressing, however one whole wall was taken up almost entirely by windows, which lightened up the room a lot. There were rolling mirrors pushed out of the way against some of the walls, making the room look even bigger. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw my short but feisty teacher walk into the room from her office. Her curly red hair fell around her face and reminded me of a fierce lion's mane. She actually looked a lot like an older version of Merida from _Brave_. She had a passion for the arts- just like me, so we got along famously. Or at least, she basically pretended that she didn't like any of her students, but the tears she cried whenever we performed showed us she really did care.

"What happened to **YOU?"** she asked as soon as she saw me.

"Would you like the summarized version?"

"Please."

I took a deep breath,

"There's a new guy at school, I befriended him, he chose me to be his partner in science class, all the girls love him, and they chased me all the way here interrogating me about him."

By the end of my run-on, I was out of breath…**again**.

"Is that all?" she laughed sarcastically.

I watched for the next few minutes as my fellow actors/actresses trickled into the room; some very punctual and others fashionably late. Today we were continuing our work on small scripts for our group comedies. They were plays yes, and so had to have a good plot, but they also needed to make the audience (my teacher and classmates) bust a gut. I was wittier per se than **funny**. I could fire back some pretty good comebacks but I wasn't the class clown. **Of course **I'd been put in a group of slackers who didn't want to do anything but talk; so the script was up to me to write. Part of me wished they'd help, but another part was glad to be able to write whatever I wanted to. I began writing and slowly zoned out. My group went off to talk somewhere. I didn't hear what was going on around me, but after a while I _did_ feel a pair of eyes reading my script. I looked up-

"**Axel!**" I exclaimed in surprise.

He was NOT in my class and therefore NOT supposed to be here **bugging me whilst I was trying to FOCUS!**

"Hey Kenny! Can I call you Kenny?"

I glared at him,

"No."

He found my tone amusing apparently because he laughed at me.

"What are you doing here?" I hissed.

I didn't feel like explaining to my classmates why an attractive **senior** was paying attention to me. If they thought I was dating him… Dating anyone more than one year older than you was frowned upon. Two years was acceptable. You were **really** pushing it with three though. I had to either get rid of him or make it clear to everyone that we were just friends. Not even- I'd just met him that day. He was deliberately ignoring me while he read my script.

"Do you have another spare or something?"

"Hmm?" he looked up, "No. I'm skipping."

"Axel! They'll call your pare-"

He cut me off with a pointed look. Oh. Right. He _was_ the parent. He gestured to my script,

"Hey this isn't half bad."

"Thanks. Is it funny?"

"Yeah. But if you had the male lead roll his eyes right here…" he pointed to a spot in my script, "That would be the icing on the cake. It's all about the non-verbals."

I was about to shoot something back about how I knew what I was doing when I considered what he'd said. _Actually… yeah, that _would _be funny!_ I thought. Without saying anything, I added it in. I saw a satisfied smirk sneak onto Axel's face.

I wanted to smack that smirk back to wherever it came from.

Just then, my teacher spotted him and came over. She didn't have a problem with visitors; in fact, she loved them! But you had to pass the test first. I was confident Axel would fail miserably. I could then continue working in peace, and enjoy the scent of cinnamon and perfectly toasted marshmallows which had entered the room at some point.

_Oh my gosh Kennedie! **Axel** is what smells like marshmallows and cinnamon! _

Suddenly the room didn't smell quite as good as I'd originally thought.

"Kennedie, who is this young man?" asked my teacher.

"This is Axel, uh…" I struggled to remember his last name, "Twilightown! He's in grade-thirteen."

At the mention of his surname, Axel hung his head a little and shook it, as though he was frustrated with his ancestors for giving him such a stupid last name.

"Very original _first _name." my teacher commented.

She was deliberately avoiding embarrassing him further about his last name. She echoed my earlier thoughts. (Except mine were more along the lines of, "What the heck is up with your name!? Were you raised by mechanics or something!?)

"And Axel, what exactly _is_ theatre?"

There it was: the million dollar question. If he passed this test, he'd be welcome in her classroom anytime. I waited for the look of bewilderment and utter confusion I'd seen so many times to cross his face. But there was nothing but calm confidence as he said,

"Theatre is the expression of oneself through not only pretending to be someone you're not, but embracing that person fully; all for the sake of your audience."

My teacher seemed impressed. (And believe me; it takes A LOT to impress her) I think my jaw dropped a little bit because that same smug smile spread across Axel's face. Without another word, nodded and continued on to the other groups. I looked at Axel incredulously,

"What crevice of your brain did **THAT **crawl out of?"

He shrugged.

"Seemed like the right thing to say."

"But seriously, how did you know that?"

"Trust me Ken,"

"_Edie!" _ I added.

"Kenn_**edie**_," he corrected, "I've had **loads** of experience with things like making a dramatic entrance, being a complex character, and creating suspense. I also did a lot of comic relief. All the good stuff."

I nodded. I wouldn't have guessed that he'd be an actor, but now that I thought about it, he _did_ have some of the characteristics belonging to a theatre kid…theatre man…guy…person, **WHATEVER! (**What do you even call a male nineteen year old!?)

"What was that about being an assassin?" I teased, "I thought you were an actor. So which is it?"

Oddly, the venom I'd hope to infuse my words with wasn't there. Only sweet teasing.

_Oh gag. How am I even doing this?_ I thought.

"Would you ask someone that you believed was an assassin if he was an assassin?" he teased back.

"Well no. Because if I revealed that I thought he was an assassin: he would **assassinate** me."

There. I'd managed to put some bite into those words.

He held up a finger,

"Exactly."

"But I _don't_ believe you're an assassin. That's why I asked."

The look on his face was a cross between deep-in-thought and a pout. I noticed that there was only five minutes left of class and everyone was packing up.

"Anyway, I've got to go. It's the end of the day after this so I'll see you on the bus."

He grinned with perfectly straight pearly whites, (ARGH! Why did he have to be so horridly perfect!?)

"Nah. I think I'll just follow you to your locker."

And that is how I arrived at my locker being tailed by an exasperating red-head.

**So let me know what you think of the story so far! Now that you know the schedule for the school day, I can move on with the plot! (YAY) What do you think will happen? Review with your predictions!**


	9. Chapter 8

**Sorry about the fact that the teacher did not appear to have a name in the last chapter; for some reason this site kept cutting out her name even after I tried changing it to something else. Hopefully I won't have any further complications. **

**Disclaimer: Kingdom Hearts is not mine and neither are the characters**

I got my things out of my locker and tried desperately to ignore Axel's presence. He wasn't saying anything, but his very _existence_ seemed to be annoying me at the moment. I felt slightly guilty for that… but not enough to apologize. He continued to trail me all the way down the stairs, through the hall, and out the door. It wasn't an "I'm following behind you like a sick puppy" kind of following but more like an "I could be somewhere other than here but I _guess_ I'll hang out with you, wherever you're going" kind of following. I got on the bus and took my seat. It was directly behind my guy friends that I liked to talk to and right under a speaker, so I could enjoy the music coming from the radio.

Axel sat down right next to me.

"Um, you _do_ know that there are lots of empty seats left right?" I said, trying to keep my tone civil. After all, it was only his first day. He smiled,

"I can see that."

Oh. He was going to be difficult. Fine then.

"In other words: this is my seat."

"-That I'm sitting in."

It wasn't a question; it was a statement. Almost a demand.

"I don't **share** my seat." I said through gritted teeth.

"Better late than never."

"GET OUT!" I yelled.

The guys had been quietly observing the scene playing out before them before then, but now they snickered and I heard a few,

"Ohhhhhhhhhh!"s.

"Hmph," Axel muttered "Fine then."

He moved to the seat across the aisle from me. Much better. I noticed Roxas and Xion get on the bus and find a seat together. Roxas sat down somewhere behind me and Xion looked uncertainly at the empty space next to him. Then, I saw a flash of determination in her blue eyes, and she sat next to him. This produced a surprised look on Roxas' face, which he hid quickly. He stared out the window and she looked around the bus. Well, it was a start. They might not be talking but at least they were sitting together. My one guy friend, who looked a bit like Roxas, turned in his seat.

"Are they new?"

He must've been talking about Axel, Roxas, and Xion.

"No Kody, they've been here for years and you're just noticing now!" I replied sarcastically.

"Geez, I was just asking. You friends with them already?"

"The blond and the girl with the black hair: yes. The redhead: not sure yet."

I saw Axel cock his head ever so slightly to better hear our conversation while he inconspicuously stared out the window waiting for the bus to leave.

"Why? What'd you get in fight with him already?"

I laughed,

"Yeah that's me: a fighter. Nah, he's just a little cocky; and you **know** what I think of _that_."

He nodded. Then his twin, Karsten, piped up.

"You liiiiiiike it!"

Ugh, he bugged me more than Axel so far. He had a curly mop of brown hair and he was tall and gangly. Not to mention rude.

"No Karsten, I can't stand cocky guys and you'd best keep that in mind!"

Axel gave a "Harumph" that sounded like a laugh.

"Ya know, if you've got a problem with me you could just tell me." He said.

"I'm fairly sure you could tell without me saying anything," I mumbled.

"Hmm, yes. Now tell me; what exactly did I do that was so arrogant?" he inquired innocently.

"Everything! You were flexing, and, and, and, you um, walk like you're king of the world, and…you talk like it too!"

"So…technically he didn't do anything." Kody said.

"Yeah! You got nothing!" yelled Karsten.

"You guys don't even KNOW him!" I retaliated.

"And you _do_?" Axel asked, drawing out the last word.

"Um, well…"

I had nothing to say to that. I guess I hadn't really given him a chance.

"Confident doesn't necessarily mean cocky." Axel added to his point.

I sighed,

"Alright fine. So what now?"

"You owe me an apology," he said smugly.

"FOR WHAT!?"

"For judging me unfairly."

"Ng. Fine! I'm sorry."

"Forrrrr?" prompted Karsten.

"I'm sorry for judging you unfairly Axel."

"Now kiss and make up," commanded Karsten, waving his hand in the air dismissively.

My face went red- with anger or embarrassment, I'm not sure. Axel smiled as if this was a swell idea.

Jerk.

He probably had a different girlfriend every week. I bet he thought he could get any girl he wanted!

"Karsten that's a figure of speech!" I pointed out. He shrugged,

"So?"

"So we're not going to take it literally."

Just then the bus started moving. I waved good-bye to Lexi as she walked past my bus on her way to hers. She left a little later than I did. I glanced behind me to check on Roxas and Xion. They were happily chatting away now, albeit a bit awkwardly. They were so adorable; it made me grin.

"What're you smiling at?" asked Kody.

"Oh nothing!"

He rolled his eyes but didn't say anything more. I tapped my foot to the music coming from my speaker and watched the country fields go by once we got out of town.

SHWICK!

What was that noise? I looked around the bus.

SHWICK… SHWICK… SHWICK.

What on earth was it? Where was it coming from? I concentrated on the direction of the sound and followed it to…

Axel. He was flicking a lighter!

"Axel! You can't have that out on the bus! And- wh- **you smoke!?**"

"Hm? No."

"Then why do you have a lighter?"

"Fire, of course."

"Oh, right. You're a pyro. I forgot."

SHWICK…SHWICK…SHWICK.

The sound was back! But this time it didn't sound like a lighter being flicked; it sounded like something scratching on metal. I could tell Axel heard it too; he looked confused. It sounded like it was coming from…

The roof of the bus?

CRASH!

Suddenly a mass of something black came tumbling through the emergency exit on the roof! When it hit the floor, I realized it wasn't just _one_ black something- it was a bunch of black somethings! And one landed on _me! _I screamed in terror as whatever it was began clawing at my face. I felt its talons scratching through the flesh of my cheeks mercilessly and I continued to scream. Suddenly I felt a searing heat around me; not burning, but still VERY hot. And then… the thing was gone. All of them were. Axel stood in the aisle, breathing rapidly as if he'd just run a marathon. His lighter was in his hand, its tiny flame flickering innocently. I could feel that my eyes were bulging and the adrenaline was still coursing through my veins. My face stung.

"W-what j-just happened?" I asked.

Axel flicked his hair with his hand as if all was well,

"Mega bats. Invasive species. Apparently they've invaded Canada as well. They don't really like fire."

"B-but your lighter…how could it make a flame that big?"

"Heh, I'm a pyro right? I mighta toyed with it a little," he said almost sheepishly.

"You have…a flamethrower…in your backpack," was all I could say.

**So we all know what those "mega bats" were right? I'm going to try to set up a poll on my profile and I really need you guys to help me out! It's concerning the ending of the story, which could either be happy-sappy or bittersweet and hopeful. Weigh in your opinions!**


	10. Chapter 9

**Hi again guys! Hope you're all doing well! I just want to say something to everyone in response to a recent review to this story: Kennedie, Kody, and Karsten have NOTHING to do with the KKK! I promise! I just liked those names! And I'm so so so sorry if anybody thought that I was racist because I am not! So, now that THAT'S out of the way…**

**Disclaimer: You all know the drill; I don't own Kingdom Hearts or its characters**

The bus driver pulled the bus over to the side of the road faster than you could say "Axel is an arsonist!", which still wasn't fast enough, seeing as I'd just been clawed in the face by a GIANT BAT! I sat in my seat; I was still in shock. As soon as our bus came to a halt, all the other kids fled off of it. But not me. I just sat there as still as a statue, trying to comprehend what just happened. I delicately touched my face where it had been scratched. It didn't feel like I was bleeding. I allowed myself to relax… a little. I was still trying to recover from being terrified. I felt a hand on my shoulder and I jumped. I hadn't realised there was still someone on the bus. It was Axel.

"You okay?" he asked gently.

I still stared straight ahead, my eyes wide,

"No."

"Well you're gonna have to get off the bus sometime."

As I started to come back to reality, the enormity of the situation took the place of my fear. I started to cry a little. Not ridiculously sobbing, just a few tears rolling down my stinging cheeks.

"Hey now, they're gone now." He comforted.

"But you said they were an invasive species! There's got to be more! Why did they attack us?"

"They're pretty unstable; they don't really need a reason to attack."

"Sounds familiar." I muttered, thinking back to my explanation I gave to Roxas as to why kids were so mean.

"B-but they ripped through the ROOF!"

He just bit his lip and shrugged. He didn't have the answers I needed. I should have known. The bus driver, Ricky, a nice older man, came back on the bus to inspect the roof.

"What the dickens were those things?" he asked himself.

Axel didn't bother responding. I became aware that his hand was _still_ on my shoulder,

"Axel I'm fine now. Would you and your hair please mind my personal bubble once again?"

It seemed _he_ had forgotten his hand too. He removed it. Ricky went outside to the curb and announced that everyone could get back on. He said that he would take everyone home as per the usual and then take the bus to the mechanic's immediately. Nobody said anything for the rest of the ride; we were all too freaked out. After another five minutes, I got off at my stop with a few other kids and walked the remaining block to my house. When I walked in the door, my mom greeted me with her usual beaming smile and hug.

"Hi honey! How was your day?"

"You won't believe this…" and I told her everything that had happened on the bus.

She was very concerned.

"Well I haven't heard about this,"

"Neither have I"

"-But we should definitely bring this to the attention of…" and she went off listing all the authorities, boards, councils, and unions she could think of. Meanwhile, I snuck off to my room and jumped on my laptop to do some research. After half an hour, I learned one thing-

Mega bats didn't exist.

Sure there were pictures of really _big_ bats, but there was no sub-species called mega-bats. Either Axel was making up a load of bologna just to make me feel better or he knew something I didn't.

And I was determined to find out what.

**Sorry about the short chapter; I'm just not feeling very imaginative today. Please help me out and respond to the poll on my profile; the end of this story is in YOUR hands, reader. Have a swellegant day!**


	11. Chapter 10

**Alright so it's time to advance the plot! Hope you continue enjoying this story! Thanks for all my reviewers (of course, more wouldn't hurt :P) and don't forget to respond to the poll on my profile page regarding the ending of this story. You guys get to choose!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Kingdom Hearts or the characters associated with it**

For the rest of the evening, I answered all my parent's questions about that day's "incident" and tried to push it out of my head until the next day; when I could ask Axel (and possibly Roxas and Xion) more about what those things were. I watched TV with my family after supper and let my mom tend to the scratches on my face. No matter how many laughs I got from our favourite shows, I was still shaken up from today's attack. The creatures haunted my mind, even though I hadn't gotten a clear look at them. And, unfortunately for me, the creatures followed me straight into my dreams that night.

I slept so horribly that I woke up feeling like a zombie. I threw on a comfy pair of denim shorts and a soft sweater over top of my favourite T-shirt. My bathroom routine was shortened significantly, as I didn't have any energy or will to put effort into my appearance like normal. I threw my long, blond hair into a ponytail (eternally grateful that I didn`t have to spend half an hour straightening it like other girls) and headed out the door after my mom said good-bye to me. I heard her remarking to my dad how "glorious" the weather was today. I chuckled quietly to myself; "glorious" was her favourite word. True, the weather was nice but I was too tired to notice much. I got on the bus and slumped down in my seat, closing my eyes for what felt like the first time in my life. I didn't even say hi to the twins. I was **that** tired. I mentally kept track of where we were since I had the bus route memorized. (Argh! There's that word again!) I wanted to start asking questions as soon as Axel got on the bus. As I felt our transportation slow to a halt, I looked out the window at the mysterious trio. Xion was wearing a black sundress with a scalloped hem, which looked very good on her, but still had a gothic look to it. Roxas was wearing **another** pair of saggy jeans but today he had a green T-shirt on top. Axel was wearing checkered shorts and a V-neck black T-shirt to match. When they got on, Roxas and Xion got different seats, which kind of disappointed me. Axel (being the stubborn dummy that he is) sat down next to me in my seat.

"You're in my seat," I said groggily.

"Doesn't look like you have the energy to fight me on it either," he replied.

His response was a joke, but it was said as if he was concerned. Bah! I didn't need his concern! I sighed,

"Yeah. You're right."

"And I also figured you would have some questions about yesterday."

"As a matter of fact, I do."

He nodded for me to continue.

"I'll have you know, I looked up "mega-bats" last night and they don't exist!"

He looked as if he was thinking really hard about what to say. Then he just sighed,

"Yeah, I guessed you would do that too."

"So tell me what they really were! Unless you don't know…"

"Well as unfortunate as it is, I _do_ know what those were."

"THEN TELL ME!" I was whisper-yelling since the bus was still really quiet.

"I can't!" he snapped slightly.

Reow! Somebody had a bowl of Cranky-O's for breakfast today! Then again, I probably wasn't acting much better. At least _I_ had an excuse!

"It raked open my face! I deserve to know!"

"No!"

"Why not!?"

"Because once you know, they'll come after you."

"Who?"

"Not who," he corrected, "_What."_

"Those things?" I said a bit quieter.

He nodded.  
"If I tell you what they are: there's no turning back. So for now, just leave it alone and hopefully they'll do the same for you. Got it memorized?"

"Yeah. Definitely."

He seemed content with that.

"Good."

"Do Roxas and Xion know?"

"Yeah, they do."

"So were those things looking for you guys?"

"I would say so, yeah."

"Wow. This is a lot to process."

"Don't think on it too much; it's not really your problem."

"So you don't think they'll come back?"

There was a pause.

"Nah."

If he was lying, I couldn't tell, but something made me suspect that he was.

The rest of that week flew by, and Lexi and I became really good friends with Axel, Roxas, and Xion. I didn't tell Alexis about the attack on the bus. I didn't want her to worry and I tried not to either. Gradually, I was able to push the memory to the back of my mind and carry on with my life. That Friday morning, I approached my parents while they were drinking their coffee on the front porch.

"Hey, um, I was wondering if I could have some friends over tonight."

My mom looked up at me from her chair.

"Who?"

"Well Lexi, of course, and also three kids who are new to our school. They live on the outskirts of town and I thought it would help them settle in if they came over for a campfire and some s'mores."

She beamed at me,

"Well that would be just glorious!"

She turned to my dad,

"Is that alright with you hon?"

He grumbled his approval.

"How old are they?" my mom asked.

"Two are in my grade and the other one is actually uh- ingradethirteen."

She raised her eyebrows,

"Grade thirteen? Well I hope she's not the kind of kid who would get you into any trouble."

"Um see, _she_ is actually a _he_," I said cautiously, "But he doesn't have to come, I just thought maybe I should include him but I mean I totally understand if you don't want him to 'cause why should I be hanging out with older kids and-"

"That's fine. He can come too." She said, cutting my ramble short.

I breathed a sigh of relief. My parents were very strict and quite protective when it came to guys.

"So how long have you liked him?" my dad asked gruffly.

My mouth fell open and my eyes bugged out of my head even more than usual. Heat rushed to my face.

"WHAT!? I DO NOT like him okay?"

"Mm-hmm, that's why your face is bright red."

"You're embarrassing me by assuming I like him! He's actually a really arrogant, annoying guy!"

"Then why invite him?"

"He's friends with Roxas and Xion; who are my other two new friends."

"What are parents naming their kids these days?" my dad muttered.

I chose to ignore his little comment. I happened to think Roxas and Xion had cool names. Axel, on the other hand, was definitely raised by mechanics or something.

My mom continued to ask questions and I gave her the details before I had to leave to catch the bus. After Tuesday, which was the day after the "Incident", Axel respected my wishes and had been sitting in a different seat than me. On our way to school I turned around to Xion, who was in the seat behind me,

"Hey Xion, do you want to come over tonight with Roxas and Axel?"

"To your house?"

"Uh-huh."

"That would be fun. As long as Roxas and Axel are going."

"Well I haven't asked them yet. Hang on."

I got Roxas' attention. He'd hit it off with Kody pretty well so they were talking in the seat in front of me.

"Hey Roxas, how about coming over for a campfire tonight? We can have s'mores!"

"'Kay. Is Axel coming?"

I frowned.

"Don't you want to know if Xion is coming?"

"I heard you talking to her."

"Oh. Yeah. I knew that."

Lastly I turned to McRedhead.

"Flamesilocks, you wanna come over **just this once** with Xion and Roxas tonight for a campfire and s'mores?"

His face lit up.

"You think I can light my marshmallow on fire?"

I looked at him in disgust,

"Yeah sure, whatever floats your boat."

"Then I'm there."

I tried to make the rest of the day go by as fast as possible but sadly, as many of you know; mere human beings cannot affect time. Finally, while I sat in drama class, the bell rang. _Let Friday night begin! _I thought. I'd already talked to Lexi about the plans for tonight. While on the bus, I texted her.

**-Btw you can totes have Axel; he's all yours. Make ur move tonight if ur gonna do it at all.**

**-**Um, what r u talking about?

-**I don't want a cocky pyromaniac. He might light me on fire. If that's his definition of "hot"…(shudder)**

-Ya I get that, but why would I want Axel?

-**Cuz u called dibs on the first day!**

-Kennedie, I was calling dibs on Roxas…

**- O.O oh-my-gosh**

**-End of chapter- So I hope you found this chapter both amusing and intriguing! Read, review, enjoy, and now… answer my poll! **


	12. Chapter 11

**Sorry I haven't posted in a while! I've been really busy which of course, leads to very **_**tired**_**. Don't forget to answer the poll about this story's ending if you want some input! As always read, review, and enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own anything I'm writing about except my original characters**

I stared in shock at the bus seat in front of me, not really seeing it. Alexis liked…Roxas? So that first day (which felt like forever ago but was really only five days ago) when she called dibs, it wasn't on Axel.

Oh crap.

She knew I liked Axel.

Well I didn't _like him_-like him, I only called dibs on him because I thought he was good-looking! I didn't even know him at that point! I mean c'mon! The guy was _soooooo_ not my type! Confident, outspoken, unique, attractive, in shape, smart, and with a good sense of humour! I mean who in their right mind would want-

Oh dear.

I was in trouble.

The absolutely most unfortunate boy related dilemma I had ever faced was demanding my attention. Axel wasn't just my type; he was **perfect.**

And I hated him for it.

The very thought of him set my blood boiling; he drove me CRAZY! He was infuriating on so many levels! Stupid, stupid, stupid. Clearly I had to remember how much he bothered me every time I started to think about how he looked. Or smelled. Or sounded when he laughed.

WHAT THE HECK WAS WRONG WITH ME!?

As I was pondering all this, I got a text from Lexi.

-How did you not know I liked Roxas? I thought it was pretty obvious

**-Um, sorry. Ya, I don't know how I missed that**

-Wait a sec…YOU LIKE AXEL?

**-No?**

**-**I don't believe u

**-That question mark was supposed to be an exclamation point. How could I ever like him!?**

-Cuz he's totes ur type! Duh! But ur right; how u could ever like him is beyond me. He's ugly.

**-WHAT? No he's not! He's better looking than Roxas that's for sure!**

-LOL u totes fell for it! I insulted him to c if u would defend him! And u did! So therefore, u luuuuuuuuv him!

- **:-( Do not.**

-Do too.

**-Just how badly do u wanna come over for s'mores?**

-Ok ok! I'm sorry! C u soon!

I slid my phone back into my pocket. I was annoyed with Lexi for a bit, but I soon found humour in the situation. The girl was crafty; I'd give her that much. Axel was attractive; so what? I knew plenty of cute guys who were also total jerks (ahem, Brandon) and had no problems with attraction. I resolved to make sure this wasn't any different. When the Banana Boat pulled up to Axel, Roxas, and Xion's big old house, Ricky looked at them expectantly. Axel raised a hand and yelled to the front of the bus,

"Keep going! I'm getting off at Kennedie's!"

Grrrr, why'd he have to say that? He said _he_ was getting off at my house (which was true) but he failed to mention that Xion and Roxas were too! All eyes were now on me. A few eyebrows went up and down and I think somebody cat-called.

Ugh. Soon I'd be hearing Kenaxeldie wherever I went. Hopefully Xion and Roxas getting off with us would eliminate any thoughts of a couple. I gave a few glares to show people I was in an ornery mood and they left me alone. I'm sorry okay? I didn't feel like dealing with people at that moment. And Axel (loosely) fit into that category, so when we all got off the bus, I let him have it.

"Why would you say that?"

"Well "that" is a useful grammatical word used to indicate somebody or something that has already been mentioned. So I'd say I would use it for its intended purpose."

I face-palmed.

"Stop taking everything literally! Why did you say only _you_ were getting off at my stop?"

He shrugged.

"I dunno. Guess it just came out like that. Isn't that alright?"

"No it is NOT alright! Now everybody thinks we're a couple!"

He seemed to ponder this. He wasn't giving a reaction; not one hint as to how he felt about people assuming we were an item. Did it embarrass him? Was he worried?

Wait, why did it even matter!? _I_ was the one who had a problem with it!

Finally he met my eyes again.

"Let them think. If they ask, I'll set them straight," through the first part of his sentence he was serious, but then he grinned, "I'll just say "No, we aren't a couple; Kennedie just thinks I'm gorgeous."

My mouth hung open. Then I slapped him. Not even joking. I slapped him right across the face and walked away. I listened to hear if he was following me and thankfully he wasn't. I heard voices in my fenced backyard. Entering the wooden gate, I saw my parents and little brother sitting around an already roaring bonfire. Apparently they didn't realize that it was only four o clock in the afternoon.

"Hi sweetie!" my mom called, "Isn't this fire just glorious?"

I muttered something in agreement before plopping my backpack down next to our picnic table. Tonight was supposed to be fun but somehow Axel had already managed to ruin things. Roxas and Xion had seen me hit him. I could only imagine what they were thinking. Gosh, now _I_ felt like the jerk. I was just considering apologizing when Flamesilocks entered through the gate.

There was a perfect handprint on his cheek. Great. Now I'd have to explain that. Surprisingly, he grinned at my parents like nothing happened. My mom smiled back and even my dad managed to turn the corners of his mouth upwards slightly.

"Well hello," my mom greeted Axel, "Welcome. And you are?"

Axel approached her and offered his hand.

"Axel. Nice to meet you."

" Nice to meet you too Axel. How did you get that mark on your face?" she questioned suspiciously.

"I was leaning on my hand during the bus ride and kinda fell asleep. I guess it must've made an imprint."

My mom's attention turned to me. Her eyebrows were up and she nodded her approval.

"Where are your other friends Kennedie?"

As if on cue, Roxas and Xion entered our smallish backyard. They looked like deer in headlights. My mom waved cheerfully at them.

"Hello! You must be Roxy and Shaun!"

I snorted to hold back laughter.

"Roxas is the dude mom. And the girl is Xion, not Shaun."

She looked slightly embarrassed.

"Sorry about that! You two both have such interesting names! Axel too! Never heard that one before."

They laughed good naturedly. I slapped Axel on the back (don't worry, not to hurt him or anything…again) and said to my parents,

"Yeah Axel here was raised by mechanics. Right Axel?"

He gave a smile that was more of a grimace.

"Yup. Repair Raplh and Fix-It Fran."

I was dying inside…WITH LAUGHTER! I decided to torture him a _little_ more.

"And he has siblings in college named Piston and Fuse!"

My mom smiled and nodded politely but I could tell she was thinking,

"Okay. Kennedie has befriended yet another young man from a strange, coarse family. I must limit the time she spends with him lest she end up having children named after automotive parts."

As if. Once I was done humiliating Axel, we all sat around the swingset at the opposite side of the yard. I sat on a swing and so did Xion, Roxas sat on the end of the plastic, yellow slide, and Axel perched precariously overhead on the monkey bars…

Swinging his legs obnoxiously in front of my face, almost hitting me every time I swung forward.

"Are you from Africa; 'cause Kenya not!?" I yelled up at him.

He seemed to think this was the funniest thing ever. Why wasn't Lexi here yet to save me from this misery of entertaining Axel? I texted her,

**-Where r u?**

-Pulling into ur laneway dummy.

I ran out to greet her.

"You have to save me from Axel!"

"Well hello to you too !"

"Hi. Okay seriously though, get him to leave me alone!"

She flipped her hair.

"I'll see what I can do."

My mom greeted her with a bear hug (she LOVED Lexi) and then Lexi joined the rest of us by the swingset. Thankfully she made good conversation until it was dark. After the sun went down, Xion spoke up.

"Don't you think we should go have s'mores now?"

I jumped up.

"Good idea!"

Everyone went ahead of me towards the bonfire because something walking along my fence had caught my eye. My black cat, Jimmy, liked to walk along the fence so this wasn't a surprise to me. But…why was he walking so funny? And I didn't remember his eyebrow whiskers being that long. There were two very prominent ones. I blinked and he/it was gone. I was just paranoid. It couldn't have been anything other than my cat…

Right?

**So tell me what you think and if anything I've said so far was funny. I try to be humorous but sadly it doesn't always strike a chord. Have a swellegant day!**


	13. Chapter 12

**Sorry to leave you all in suspense for so long if you were following this story from the beginning! I am here to relieve the suspense and move the plot along!**

**Disclaimer: We all know what I'm supposed to say here after eleven chapters so let's just skip it this time.**

I tried to enjoy the rest of the evening but my eyes darted towards any small movement. Lexi noticed that I was on edge but didn't say anything. Axel chatted it up with my parents and even got my dad to join the conversation. He was being very polite and…normal. Roxas and Xion on the other hand just kind of sat off to the side on their own. They seemed a little bewildered by everything and retreated to their own little bubble.

"You guys cold?" I said kindly, "You're a little far from the fire. As a matter of fact, I'm a little chilly myself and I'm sitting right here!"

I registered that Axel had heard what I'd said. He looked at me, then at our dying fire.

It flared three feet in the air! Then, it settled back down, warm and toasty once again.

I looked at him incredulously. He just grinned. Interestingly enough, I was the only one who noticed the fire flare up. Roxas and Xion moved closer to the fire upon my urging.

"So Xion," Lexi began, "If Roxas and Axel are cousins, where do you fit in? How come you live with them?"

"Um well…"

Axel butted in,

"She's my sister."

Why was he constantly answering for them? It was as if he thought them incapable of thinking for themselves! However, I was satisfied with his answer. I couldn't see any resemblance though. Axel had a very angular face, Xion's was rounded. Axel had green eyes, Xion had blue eyes. Axel had red hair, Xion had black hair. Well, maybe they each got all the features of one parent. Yeah, that was it. For some reason I didn't want to believe (No, I _refused_ to believe) that they were anything different than normal teenagers who'd gone through some unfortunate circumstances.

But then my mind would keep flashing back to the attack.

For whatever reason, there were _things_, **dangerous** things, after my friends.

Point 1 for Not Normal.

Roxas had incredible fighting skills; enough to take down one of the most athletic guys in our grade.

Point 2 for Not Normal.

Xion could do complex math like it was the easiest thing ever.

Point 3 for Not Normal.

And Axel made our fire jump several feet into the air just-by-looking-at-it.

There were too many points for Not Normal.

Nobody talked to me for the rest of the night. They must've seen I was in deep thought. I probably had a confused scowl on my face. I saw Axel glance over a few times in concern. Roxas and Xion whispered about me. Lexi stuffed her face with s'mores.

Okay so maybe _she_ wasn't that worried. But everyone else totally was. I know it. I could just like, **feel** the worriedness rolling off of them.

Sigh. In reality, Axel was the only one that noticed, which bothered me immensely. At about ten o clock, Axel stood, stretched, and announced it was time to go. Xion gave me a smile to say good-bye and Roxas said,

"See ya!"

I walked them out to the front yard. Lexi was in a very deep conversation with my parents regarding what was _really_ in marshmallows, so she stayed behind. It was then that I realized the Twilightowns had no way of getting home. They'd gotten off the bus with me and I couldn't let them walk home at night.

"Hey how are you guys getting home?" I asked Xion.

Her face paled.

"I don't know."

"Roxas how are you guys getting home?"

He shrugged.

"I guess we'll walk. No big deal."

"It's late! And dark! Who knows what could happen to you!"

Axel put a hand on my shoulder and mocked me,

"Well thank you for your concern Mother, but I think I can handle anything this lakeside village can throw at me."

I fumed.

"Okay so maybe it's not exactly a metropolis! But it can still be dangerous to walk at night!"

"I _have_ actually arranged a way for us to get home you know." He said arrogantly, as if I thought he was an idiot.

Which I did.

"Oh. Well fine then. I guess I won't offer my concern for you anymore since you've got EVERYTHING UNDER CONTROL!"

He tilted his head to the side and closed his eyes briefly, as though he were actually angry and barely controlling it.

"You're right Kennedie. I _do_ have everything under control. And I mean **everything**." Here he softened, "So _please_ don't worry about it."

We both knew he wasn't just talking about their ride home. He was telling me that he would also take care of those _things_. I sighed in resignation.

"Okay. Just be careful."

He also realized we were no longer talking about their transportation.

"Careful? What a strange word." He mused, "I wonder what it could possibly mean."

I socked him lightly in the bicep.

"Ow." I said quietly. Figures. I try to hurt him and instead I hurt myself.

"I'm serious! I wouldn't want anything to happen to Roxas and Xion."

His face darkened. Or maybe the moon came out from a cloud and made the shadows on his face deeper. Either way, he didn't look thrilled with my statement.

"Yeah," he muttered, "Wouldn't want anything to happen to them."

I shuffled awkwardly where I was standing.

"Well, um, you guys have a good night." I said.

Roxas and Xion replied in unison with "You too!"

I went back to the backyard and helped clean up. Lexi's parents came to pick her up, and when they did, I looked to see if Axel, Roxas, and Xion were still there.

They were gone.

I went to bed almost immediately after Lexi left but couldn't sleep.

I thought about how, when you go to summer camp or something and you meet someone, by the end of a couple days, you feel like you've known them forever. You just click. That's how I felt with my new friends. I felt like I knew them but yet…didn't know them at all. As I pondered this, I heard a tap at my window. I bolted upward into a sitting position and almost screamed.

One of the _things_ was outside my window. It was smaller than the one that had attacked me, and didn't have wings, but it was just as terrifying. It was as black as the night, and stood much like I imagined a tyrannosaurus rex would. It was hunched over with short, stubby front legs that were more like arms. And its eyes were huge, yellow, and **glowed**. The things I had originally thought were my cat's eyebrow whiskers were actually antennae. I was about to scream for help when…

It disappeared.

I mean that literally. It just melted into the darkness.

Despite the fact that I was breaking the "Don't-text-at-night" rule, I got out my phone and went through my contacts list to tell Alexis what had just happened. To my surprise, Axel's name and number were programmed into my phone. I certainly hadn't asked him for his number, nor had he given it to me. Apparently he had gotten a hold of my phone at some point without me knowing. As much as I hated it, I had to tell him.

**-Hey Axel. It's Kennedie.**

-Oh. Hi. Don't u think it's a little late to still be up?

**-Not when one of those black things was just scratching at my window!**

- O.O

**-Yeah. Explain. Now. I NEED to know!**

**-**How late can u stay up?

Apparently his earlier hostility was gone and replaced with concern.

**-However long it takes for u to spill ur guts.**

-K. Ur ABSOLUTELY sure u want to know?

**-YES!**

-I could be putting ur life in danger by telling u this. U will never be the same again.

**-I know, I know! Axel, I'm going insane right now with anxiety! You HAVE to tell me!**

-Alright. Those things are called Heartless. For good reason 2.

**-They don't have hearts!? How r they alive?**

-They aren't exactly. And they do have hearts…stolen ones.

**-They r not ALIVE!? Cuz this one looked pretty alive to me!**

-Argh, it's really hard to explain to someone who doesn't know!

**-OK so forget that. Why r they after u guys?**

** -**Cuz we r a threat to them. Well, Roxas and Xion r anyway.

**-Ur not a threat?**

-Roxas and Xion have these weapons called Keyblades. I don't. The Keyblade is the only thing that can actually destroy a Heartless and take back the stolen heart.

Axel went on to explain how they were part of something called Organization XIII and had powers of darkness so they just warped home, and he was actually an assassin, and he thought their boss was up to no good and that's why they were here 'cause they're not actually from this world and it was their punishment for snooping around and the Heartless track them 'cause they smell like darkness and now they can smell it on me and Lexi and we were in trouble.

So basically your typical one-in-the-morning conversation.

**Well that's it for today! Please don't forget to review and answer my poll! It's REALLY important that you do! The ending of this story is in your hands! And thanks to KH777 for consistently reviewing and answering my poll!**


	14. Chapter 13

**Hey just a heads up that the end of the story is approaching (although it's not yet imminent, don't worry) so if you haven't already, please answer my poll about the ending of this story. If you don't take the time to do that, that's fine, hopefully you enjoy the story as much as I enjoy writing it!**

**Disclaimer: Aww do I really have to say it **_**again**_**? Fine. I do not own KH or its characters or Square Enix or Disney.**

I think it's safe to say I did not sleep more than two hours that night. I stayed up forever getting Axel to answer my millions of questions. For whatever reason, despite the fact that what he told me was terrifying, I acquired a strange sense of peace from at least knowing all the facts. I slept into the late morning until my mom finally came in to see if I was dead or something. It was a good thing I didn't have to go to school; I mostly just lounged around the house for the rest of the weekend. There were no more incidents with the Heartless. I returned to school on Monday fully recuperated.

For three weeks, nothing happened. Lexi and I became best friends with Roxas, Xion, and yes, Axel too. It was as if sharing in the knowledge of the Heartless and their other secrets had brought us closer. I figured Lexi deserved to have all the facts too, so we told her everything. At first she totally flipped out but then, like me, realized that this was the most exciting thing to happen to us since, well… EVER! However, we struggled with the idea that our closest friends would be leaving us forever in just two weeks. They would go on to bigger things (MUCH bigger things) and we would be left to move on with our lives as if nothing ever happened. Also, the lack of activity from the Heartless made me anxious; I felt like we were in the calm before the storm. Lastly, Alexis wasn't backing off with Roxas. _That_ was another problem. Surely she must've known how Xion felt about him? I mean, it was so obvious! Apparently it was _not_ as obvious to her. I saw the pained look Xion got on her face whenever Lexi flirted with Roxas. I finally decided that it was time to say something. On our way to math first thing in the morning, I said,

"So Lex, you **really** like Roxas huh?"

"OH my gosh, how can you _not?_ He's totally gorgeous and he's so nice too!"

"Yeah, you're not the only one that's noticed; and that's a problem."

She turned to look at me head on and raised an eyebrow.

"What do you mean?"

"Do I have to spell it out for you?"

"Uh **yeah!**"

"Xion likes him too!"

The colour drained from her face.

"Wh-what?"

"You heard me."

"Oh. I feel horrible! I had no idea! Oh my gosh, I need to find Xion and apologize!"

And she ran off muttering to herself about what a horrible person she was, which sent a pang of guilt through me but at least now there was no one standing in Xion's way. I didn't hear Roxas come up behind me until he was walking right beside me. I jumped.

"Roxas! Don't do that?"

"Do what?"

"Scare me like that!"

"Sorry. I guess I don't make much noise when I move."

"Yeah, handy for sneaking up on Heartless I'm sure," I said sarcastically, but also with humour.

"I'm not sure we should talk about that here Kennedie; people might hear you."

"Nah, they're too wrapped up in their own little worlds. So anyway, were you just killing time or did you want something?"

"I actually-uh, I was wondering if, um…"

I laughed at his nervousness. He didn't have to be so awkward anymore; I mean we knew each other pretty well.

"What's on your mind Roxas?"

"Xion." He blurted, then blushed.

I smiled knowingly.

"I figured as much. What specifically about Xion?"

"I want to take your advice. To take her out on a date I mean."

"That's great! I'm so proud of you Roxas! Where were you thinking of taking her?"

"Well that's kind of the problem. I don't know."

He rubbed the back of his head, which I had learned was what he did when he was thinking hard or feeling conflicted.

"Well I think Xion would appreciate just a simple walk in the park with a packed lunch or something. Oh and you guys could feed the ducks! I'm sure she'd like that!"

He smiled, a little more confident now.

"Thanks Kennedie! I don't really know who I would've asked if I didn't know you, to be honest. I think I've got to go to class now but thanks again!"

"Hey, it's no problem Roxas. I'm glad to have helped. The rest is up to you."

As he nodded and walked off, I pondered how Lexi would feel once Roxas left. I was pretty sure she was just infatuated with him, with no real attachment. That was good; it'd make it easier to say good-bye. I entered math class and sat down with a few minutes to spare, so I continued thinking. What about me? I'd come to appreciate Xion's quiet innocence and sweetness. She was such a good friend. And Roxas was cool; after all, Brandon hadn't spoken to/or about me since Roxas dealt with him. So…what about Axel? Logically, I should be able to say good-bye to him quite easily. He was a pain in the neck and drove me insane but he wasn't _all_ bad. As it dawned on me what a mess I'd be when my friends returned to The Organization, I figured out what I'd have to do. It would kill me inside, but I had to do it. It would be easier on everybody, I reasoned. I would avoid Xion and Roxas (I just couldn't bring myself to push them away) and as for Axel…

Well he'd hate me by the time he had to leave.

After math and English, everyone met at the cafeteria.

I wasn't there.

Or at least I didn't _appear_ to be. I stood far enough away that they wouldn't see me. I saw Axel leaning casually against the wall, Lexi laughing ridiculously at some stupid joke he'd made, and Roxas talking to Xion while staring at his feet. In a matter of seconds, Xion was grinning the biggest smile I'd ever seen on her and they walked towards where I was standing at the cafeteria entrance. Panicking, I quickly looked around for a place to hide. The only thing I could find was…

A garbage can.

_Kennedie, for the sake of your friends, get in the darn garbage can!_

So I did. And yes, there were people who saw me. And yes, they did laugh and direct strange looks at me. My cheeks burned in embarrassment (or maybe it was just the rotting food) but I forced myself to stay in the garbage can because I couldn't let them see I'd deliberately avoided them. Once I heard them pass, laughing and talking blissfully, I got out of the garbage can.

Or rather, I _tried_ to.

Being 5'9" makes it rather difficult to shove yourself into a small cylindrical space so, I was stuck. Well and truly stuck. I thought about calling for help. I knew there were still people out there. No, this was too humiliating already. I couldn't ask for help. But what if I was late for class? I was NEVER late for class! What was I going to do?

"Kennedie," I heard a deep voice above me, "Do I _want_ to know why you`re in a garbage can?"

Oh no. It was Axel. Time to put my plan into action and officially become the biggest jerk at school. I looked up, craning my neck to see his face.

"Well if you _must_ know, I'm studying food decomposition for my science project _Axel_." I made sure I made his name sound like a disease.

"Roxas told me you guys are studying the Particle Theory."

Darn it.

"It's extra-curricular! Obviously **you** wouldn't know that!"

I could almost feel him take a step back in surprise at my tone.

"Well would you like some help getting out of there?"

"NO! Why would I need your help!? Gosh Axel, _you're_ the one who needs help!"

"You're obviously stuck."

"Fine! Yes, I'm stuck! So what?"

"So would you like some help or not?"

"I would rather stick my hand in burning coals than have it touch yours!"

If you didn't know him, you wouldn't have even noticed the subtle pained look in his eyes. But of course, I knew him and saw it.

_I'm so sorry;_ I wanted to say, _I didn't mean any of it!_

Without another word, he reached under my arms and hoisted me roughly out of the garbage can. I swatted a banana peel off my shoulder.

"There. You're out of the can and your hands remain untouched."

Before I could say anything, he walked away. His usual confident stride was replaced with fast, angry steps. I felt like I'd been punched in the gut. I tried desperately to muster up some kind of annoyance, but there was none. How had I gone from wanting nothing to do with him to feeling like I was dying inside with guilt from treating him so horribly? This was all a part of the plan, I told myself. Minimize the pain of saying good-bye.

All part of the plan.

**As a closing for this chapter I just want to encourage you to read my other story: **_**A Kingdom Hearts Christmas**_** if you haven't already and let me know what you think! Have a swellegant day!**


	15. Chapter 14

**Sorry I haven't written in a while but I'm back now! Hope you're all doing well!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own KH**

Do you have any idea how hard it is to act like you hate your closest friends? Why am I even asking you; I'm in total violation of the fourth wall! I guess that shows how messed up I felt for the next week and a bit. A whole week and then three days. Ten days of being evasive and downright rude. I was forced to see Xion look at me questioningly in math and English. I saw each and every time Roxas opened his mouth and began to say something to me, but then decided against it when I stopped making eye contact. And after a few hostile encounters made hostile by me, Axel would not speak to me and only glared daggers at me whenever we were in the same room.

It was horrible.

Awful. Gut-wrenching. Heart breaking. Whatever emotional pain word you can relate to: it was that.

Obviously Lexi took notice. I think at first she just assumed that I was having a bad day or something, but when my strange behaviour continued, she did something about it. We were walking down the hall and Roxas had just waved to be as he passed. Not only did I not wave back, I also looked away. Lexi sharply pulled me out of the flow of people.

"Okay what is WRONG with you?" she demanded to know.

"Lex…"

"Because I'm sorry Kennedie, but you've been acting like a total jerk!

"I can explain."

"Good. Start explaining."

She looked less angry now and more desperate to get her old best friend back. I could totally understand but it wasn't like I was acting any differently towards her.

"You _are_ aware that Roxas, Xion, and Axel are leaving in two days right?"

"Yeah. Obviously. I've been counting down the days." She said sadly.

"Well I don't do well with good-byes. I thought it would be easier on everyone if they all hated me. Then there would be no need for me to even show up for a good-bye. And they wouldn't have any pain from a broken friendship. They'll hurt less this way."

She looked at me like I had just said I wanted to nuke the world.

"THEY'LL HURT LESS!? Kennedie do you even know what you just said?"

"I'm fairly aware, yes."

"You just said you're going to hurt our friends so that they _won't_ hurt! How does that make **any** sense?"

"In the long run…"

"If that's what you call thinking ahead; I don't want to know your life plan! But alright, I can think ahead too. I see our friends going on crazy dangerous missions and one particular friend thinking in the back of his mind "Why did she push me away? What did I do?" THAT is what's going to happen; you're not going to save them any pain. Honestly, I think you're just telling yourself that so that you can ignore the _real_ reason why you're doing this! You're being a coward!"

"That's not tr-"

I couldn't finish. I couldn't argue against the truth. I guess I really _had_ deceived myself into thinking things were going to turn out better with my plan. I sighed.

"Yeah."

"That's all you have to say for yourself?"

"Pretty much," I looked at her helplessly, "How can I fix this?"

"Well I can't help you with that part. You're the smart one; figure it out! I'm just glad you realized how stupid your plan was."

"I know I need to do some major apologizing."

"Start now. We still have ten minutes before the school day officially starts and even if you're late; I'll cover for you."

I hugged her.

"Thanks bud! You're the best!"

She laughed.

"I know."

I ran off in the direction I'd seen Roxas go. He hadn't gotten very far, as he'd run into his official girlfriend Xion and they were talking. I was amazed how much of a difference one date had made. They were really comfortable now and used to our world. You could see now that they had a history of being close friends. Whatever they were talking about, it concerned them. They were both frowning. I realized instantly when I approached them and they stopped talking that _I_ was what they had been talking about.

"Guys…"

I only got that one word out before they turned away sadly and walked off. My eyes started to sting. No! I was **not** giving up yet! After all, they hadn't given up on me right? I chased after them and grabbed their shoulders, and then spun them around to face me.

"Look I know you guys probably don't want to talk to me right now but please give me a chance!"

They looked at each other. After making me wait forever, they nodded.

"I am **SO** sorry for the way I treated you guys. You didn't do anything to deserve it and I'm not even going to explain my motives because, trust me, they are really, REALLY lame. Like I mean, SUPER-

"-We forgive you." Xion interrupted.

I stared in disbelief.

"Wh-what?"

Roxas laughed.

"She said we forgive you. We knew something was up so we were just thinking of a way to cheer you up. We knew we didn't do anything to make you upset; Xion just figured you were going through something and didn't know how to deal with it."

"We were going to buy you some balloons at lunch." Xion added, while smiling sweetly, "We were afraid Alexis might've accidently hinted it to you and you were coming over here to ask us questions. It was supposed to be a surprise so that's why we walked away."

The stupid tears were back. Curse my crying! If I could just stop them from spilling over, I'd be fine. I started rolling my eyes around in their sockets to get the excess moisture to dry up. I must've looked pretty funny because Xion started giggling and Roxas took a step back.

"Oh," I said, realizing what I was doing, "Um sorry. My uh-contacts were bothering me."

"You don't wear contacts…" Roxas said slowly.

Darn. I forgot they knew about my glasses I occasionally wore to see the chalkboard. Roxas smirked, which somehow didn't look right on anyone but…

"OH! Sorry guys, I've got to bolt! I need to talk to Axel too before class starts!"

While I jogged down the nearly empty hallway, I checked the time on my phone. Two minutes. Provided Axel was where he usually was for his spare (in the library with his laptop) then I had just enough time. I slid not all that gracefully down the banisters of the stairs before accepting the fact that I sucked at it and just took the stairs two at a time. Upon arriving on the first floor, I sprinted to the library and burst through the doors. A few pairs of eyes looked up from books and computers, but none of them were Axel's. He was **always** in the library! Where else could he be?

The bell rang.

I sighed in defeat, accepting that I was late for class. Well, if I was "skipping", I better make the best of it. I thought and thought and thought until I had an "Aha!" moment. Axel had to report to Xemnas once a week. For him to do that, he had to be within range of the school's Wi-Fi to use his webcam but still out of sight. I knew that if you went outside and stayed close to the walls of the building, you could just barely pick up a signal. I was off running again. I started by the front doors and gradually walked around the perimeter of the school. As I walked through our large, well-tended garden, I saw Axel about fifty feet away. He was within earshot. I was just about to yell his name when the humongous shrub beside me rustled.

Out of nowhere, a black arm or tentacle of some kind shot out and wrapped around my waist! It coiled up towards my neck, where it covered my mouth as I tried to scream. I was being dragged towards the shrub! I saw Axel with his back turned to it all, red hair stark against the blue sky.

That was the last thing I saw before everything went black.

**Ohhhhh cliff-hanger chapter ending! Haha hope you've enjoyed the story because (if you haven't noticed) we have arrived at the climax! Kennedie's been captured without making amends with Axel, the calm before the storm is over with the Heartless, and the sea-salt trio must return to The World That Never Was in 2 days. What will happen? Keep reading to find out and don't forget to review! (And also, even **_**I**_** don't know how it's going to end because I need YOUR votes to come to a conclusion. Don't let me down fellow Fan Fiction lovers!)**


	16. Chapter 15

**Don't worry; I haven't taken a leave of absence! What with school starting and all I've been a little preoccupied. After this chapter is posted for a couple days I will be closing my poll so if you haven't had your say regarding the ending of this story now's your chance!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Kingdom Hearts**

When I woke up, the first thing I noticed was that I felt like I was breathing through a straw. My throat was swollen and horribly sore. I tried to swallow, which was a mistake. As I struggled to recall what had happened to me I massaged my aching throat. I remembered I'd been attacked and dragged into the shrub but right now it certainly didn't look like I was in a shrub. I was surrounded by darkness and the stone floor I sat on was cold. I had on no restraints, so I got up and looked around while my eyes adjusted. Thankfully the only thing that hurt was my throat. My ribs only felt slightly bruised. For a second I thought I was in a cave, but I soon realized I was in a sort of basement the size of a small warehouse. There were stacks of packaged paper and ancient photo copiers lying around along with lots of boxes. And on the wall…

There was a huge East Elgin Secondary School mural!

No way! I was in the school's basement! Well, the mysterious, mythical basement. You could ask anybody and they'd tell you our school didn't have a basement. I studied the mural. It was an eagle (our school's mascot) with its head turned to the side. But where a giant eye should've been, there was a hole. It looked slightly like… a Keyhole. As the enormity of where I was hit me, I heard a slithering noise behind me. Whipping around, I saw nothing out of the ordinary though.

WHAM!

I was knocked to the ground by a giant head! The wind was knocked out of me and my chest heaved with the effort of trying to coax breath into my seemingly crushed lungs. I looked up to see a gargantuan black cobra hovering over me!

It had glowing yellow eyes, just like other Heartless and on the back of its hood was the mark of the Heartless. Stretched out it was probably twenty feet long! It bared its glistening white fangs and coiled its body, preparing to strike. Knowing what was coming, I did the courageous thing…

I fainted.

And you know what, the bite never came. Of course, I wouldn't have known even if it _did_ but whatever. When I woke up (which was about 5 minutes later, I learned) I saw Axel locked in deadly combat with the Heartless snake! We were still in the basement and I had no idea how Axel had gotten down there or found me. The strange thing was, it _was_ Axel and yet… it wasn't.

He had a fierce and kind of scary expression on his face. Instead of his usual casual apparel, he was wearing a long black cloak with a hood and a zipper all the way down the middle. Despite ya know, my total and utter terror, the thought that he would be in a lot of trouble if someone ever decided to pull that zipper still occurred to me. I probably would've chuckled if I wasn't watching him battle for his life. The two combatants exchanged blows; the cobra would strike with the speed of lightning and Axel would barely have time to block with his chakrams before hurling one at it. Despite his amazing power and speed, I could see Axel was losing the fight. He was holding his own for now but wouldn't last long. I'd like to say I got up and with super-human strength, hurled a photo copier at the snake or something, but the truth is: I'm not that strong or courageous. I mean, think about it; if you were confronted with a giant snake, you'd probably run for your life or pass out like I did. We're only human.

However, I did think of something I could do. I sprinted for the only door in sight while the snake was distracted. Unfortunately, Axel saw me. He didn't say anything, but the pained expression on his face told me he thought I was taking advantage of his heroism and running away. In a sense, that was true, but I wasn't betraying him.

Not by a long shot.

I sprinted up some stairs and found a door above me.

_AHA!_ I thought. This was why nobody knew about the basement! It was a cellar and the only access point was the door under the shrub. I climbed out and ignored the stinging pains of little twigs scratching me everywhere. I was already out of breath but I forced myself to keep going. I ran into the school, down the hall, and into the gym. A bunch of guys' heads turned to look at me and a just served volleyball fell to the floor. Roxas saw me and knew right away by my heavy breathing and panicked expression that something was wrong.

"R-Roxas! Come quickly! It's an emergency!"

He nodded and ran to meet me, gym clothes and all. As we ran, I explained what was going on. He didn't say anything except,

"We have to get Xion!"

"Right."

We burst into my math class on the second floor moments later.

"Xion!" Roxas cried, "We need you to come with us right now!"

My teacher was not impressed.

"I'm sorry; Miss Twilightown is occupied at the moment. And you, Kennedie, are late."

"I know, and I'm really sorry but this is an emergency!"

Xion was already up and walking uncertainly toward us. Lexi stood dramatically, pushing back her chair.

"I'm coming too!"

My teacher's mouth hung open in shock.

We ignored her threats of suspension as we sprinted to Axel's rescue. As we approached the garden and the door to the basement, I saw shimmers come from Xion and Roxas' hands. The sparkles morphed into their Keyblades! Axel had described them to me before, but it hadn't prepared me for their majesty. The giant keys emitted an aura of justice and power which spurred me onward. When we reached the basement, a grim sight greeted me.

Axel lay on the floor; his tanned face marred by cuts and bruises and… fear. I had never seen him look like that before. His chakrams were held up in front of his face, ready to block one more blow. Seeing him helpless and afraid ignited a fire in me. That stupid snake was going to pay! Roxas charged into the battle with a battle cry; flanked by Xion. Xion nimbly jumped onto the top of the snake's head and started landing heavy blows. Roxas on the other hand, stepped directly in front of Axel, ready to defend his friend. The Heartless was bewildered by the blows to the head, and began whipping and writhing around in an effort to get Xion off. Finally the tip of its tail whipped Xion's back and she fell with a cry. Then, it lunged at Roxas who barely had enough time to dodge. Unfortunately, this meant that Axel was exposed fully to the blow. I'm sure I screamed something that was supposed to be "NOOOOOO!" but in my hysteria came out more as "BLAAAAAAAAHHHHH!" and without even realizing that I moved, I was standing in front of him holding his chakrams. I crossed them by my head and braced myself for the blow. When it came, it knocked me clean off my feet and into a wall. After smacking my head against the wall, blackness crept into my vision.

_Oh yay, more fainting._


	17. Chapter 16

**This is the final chapter of **_**Glorious, **_**however I will post an epilogue to wrap things up. I really hope you all have enjoyed reading this story as much as I've enjoyed writing it. It's been so great to have your support and push the limits of my creative writing. Thank you SO much to all of you who favourited, followed, reviewed, or just read; it means a lot. So here it is: Chapter 16.**

**Disclaimer: I still don't own Kingdom Hearts, but don't we all know that by now? **

I have to say, fainting isn't all that unpleasant. It's scary if you don't know it's coming and you wake up on the floor, but if you're scared out of your mind; it's a welcome relief. In my case, it wasn't nearly as scary as the giant monster snake that was trying to kill me and my friends. I woke to the smell of mildew and the sound of my friends still battling for their lives in a basement but strangely, this time it didn't bother me so much. Everything was kinda fuzzy and for a second I thought my head hurt, but then it went away and I was left feeling wonderfully sleepy. _But my friends…_ I thought. What was wrong with them again? Something…something was hurting them right? No, couldn't be. I wouldn't be so sleepy if something was wrong. Maybe I'd just close one eye; make sure things really were okay but rest at the same time. Yes, that was a good idea. But, why was my left eye so fuzzy? I closed my left eye and opened the right one. My right eye was fine. I alternated between opening one eye while closing the other and then switching. There was definitely something funky going on with my eye. Realizing this caused me to be a bit more aware. My friends _were_ in trouble! I got up, but then staggered when my head started swimming. I put my hand on the wall for support. It was possible that I…

"KENNEDIE! GET IN HERE; WE NEED YOUR HELP!" Roxas yelled.

I assessed the situation with my right eye. Keeping the left one open made everything too fuzzy. Axel was leaning against a wall, barely conscious, away from the fight. Roxas and Xion were still attacking the snake. It looked like it might've been slowing down, but it was still putting up a heck of a fight.

"What do I fight with?" I yelled back.

And no, I still hadn't suddenly gained miraculous courage. I was basically peeing myself. However, when your adrenaline is rushing, you don't really factor in a nervous bladder. You're more worried about NOT DYING.

"Chakrams…" Axel weakly called out.

Oh. Duh!

I snatched up Axel's flaming chakrams and rushed the snake, having absolutely no idea what I was doing. And not noticing that I wasn't getting third degree burns.

"Hey! Stupid snake!" I yelled, "EAT THIS!"

I whipped a fiery chakram at the snake's gaping mouth and decided to add in a smart aleck remark seeing as I was the hero at the moment and you know, heroes are constantly launching witty insults and bad puns at the evil dudes.

"Hope you like your food HOT!"

Okay. I know. That was really lame. But I didn't have much practice fighting the forces of evil and all that jazz. I didn't even live in a galaxy far, far away!

To my relief, the chakram lodged in the snake's throat, choking it. And probably burning it too 'cause the school basement suddenly smelled like my grade nine food's class during a lab.

"Hah! Try crunching THAT you…"

And my heroic lines pretty much ran out there. I couldn't think of a good insult. Axel managed to finish it for me. I'm not gonna repeat what he said. But it was pretty long. Let's just say if we were on a reality TV show, there would've been thirty straight seconds of BLEEEEEEEEEP. He'd gotten his fire and strength back, and after he snatched them away from me: his chakrams.

We all stood there panting for a while, watching as the snake writhed around, hissing and burning, until finally it dissolved in a blob of darkness.

And then I saw the heart.

It was the most beautiful thing I'd ever seen. It was a rose coloured crystal emanating sparkling light- and something else:

Hope.

It floated up to the ceiling and right before it hit it, the heart simply faded away. I stared at the spot where it had been for a moment, awe-struck. That heart was what my friends fought for. Every day they risked their technically non-existent lives to rescue hearts. True, they didn't know what they would be used for when Kingdom Hearts was complete, but they did it anyway. That was A.O.K by me though, as long as the Heartless didn't have people's hearts.

"So," I started, still breathing heavy, "The snake's dead."

"Yup." I heard Lexi say. I turned around to see her hiding in a corner. Apparently her earlier bravado had run out quickly. Her eyes were wide. I grinned.

"Where were you in the fight bud?"

"COWERING!"

We all laughed. Well, except Lexi. I noticed Axel polishing his chakrams.

"What? What's wrong with them?" I asked, offended. He shot me a glare. Oh, right. I still hadn't apologized.

"You got snake spit on them."

I hugged him. He just stood there at first, shocked. Then he patted me awkwardly on the back with one hand. I stepped back. We were all safe. Everything was okay. Well… maybe not everything.

"What's up with your eye?" Roxas asked.

"Yeah, it's not lined up with the other one." Xion commented with concern in her voice.

Her voice sounded far away. Like she was talking to me underwater.

"Eye…doesn't…line up?" I slurred.

And then, (shocker!) I fainted AGAIN.

Nobody should be surprised at this point. Seriously guys, I'm not that heroic.

I woke up in a white, sunlight filled room. Everything in the room was white except for a bouquet of bright red carnations on a little table next to my bed.

My hospital bed.

My head throbbed faintly. I quickly remembered what had happened before I ended up here. Thankfully, everything was no longer fuzzy. I remembered from one time I had visited a relative in the hospital that there was a little button on my bed for calling the nurse. I pressed it, and within moments, there was a perky brunette standing next to me.

"Oh you're awake! Great! How are you feeling?"

I tested my voice.

"Not too bad." It was hoarse.

"There are some people who have been anxiously waiting for you to wake up. Do you mind if I send them in?"

I nodded my approval.

My parents, little brother, and friends filled the room almost immediately. My mom fussed over me, asking if I was okay and if I needed anything, my dad ruffled my hair, and my nine-year-old brother immediately started pushing buttons on the TV remote. Lexi bounced up and down on the bed excitedly, and three other people hung back. Xion smiled happily, Roxas flashed me a thumbs-up, and Axel gave his trademark smirk. I motioned for them to come over too. After I satisfied everyone's desire for information, I asked some questions of my own.

"Okay, first of all, why am I in a hospital?"

"They said you got smacked in the head and it made you stupid." My brother said. I swatted at him, but he was out of my reach. Axel spoke next.

"When the juvenile delinquents hit you in the head with that baseball bat it gave you a severe concussion."

"Juvenile delin-"

He silenced me with a look that said "Just go with it." I guess it would've been pretty unbelievable for my parents if I'd told them I was attacked by a giant snake in my school's basement that didn't exist. My pals must have made up a pretty good story.

"And what is being done with the juvenile delinquents Axel?" I asked cautiously.

"We're suing them for all they're worth!" my dad declared vehemently.

"Reeeeally?" I raised my eyebrows at Axel. He turned to my dad.

"Well actually sir, they are being relocated to a military school in, uh, Russia. And they don't have any money to give you anyway."

My dad seemed pleased with this.

"Who are the flowers from?" I wondered, admiring them again.

All eyes turned to Axel, whose face turned as red as his hair.

"Oh yeah, red flowers, I should've figured that out sooner."

" 'Cept your head is messed up so it's hard for you to figure stuff out!" my brother quipped.

"Yes Kaeden! Now mom and dad have TWO kids with messed up heads!"

He stuck his tongue out at me just as I thought of something.

"How long was I out for?"

"Like, FOREVER!" Lexi helpfully supplied.

"Can anybody give me a more _accurate_ guess?"

"It's noon right now. So, a day and a half." My dad said.

"What? A day and a half! That's crazy!"

Something else dawned on me too.

"Uh, mom, dad, can you guys give me a second with my friends? And take Kaeden with you too?"

My parents looked confused but they did as I asked. As soon as they were out of the room, I blurted,

"Why are you guys still here? Oh, wait- that came out wrong. I meant, don't you guys have to leave today?"

Axel, Xion, and Roxas looked grim.

"We leave now, technically." Xion said sadly.

My heart sank.

"Oh. Are you all packed then?"

They nodded. Lexi started sniffling. Roxas patted her on the back.

"Hey don't cry. You'll always have your memories of us. Nobody can take those away from you."

Roxas' attention seemed to please her, although she didn't stop getting all teary on us.

"So do you guys just kinda _poof_ back or what?" I questioned.

"Yeah, we'll warp." Roxas replied.

"Well," I said, getting up, "You guys can't leave without a proper good-bye."

I started with Xion. I gave her a big hug and said,

"You look after these two for me alright? Who knows what trouble they'll get into if you don't! You've been a great friend."

She sniffed and gave me a hug back without saying anything. I think the lump in her throat wouldn't let her. Next was Roxas. I hugged him too, but just quickly so it wasn't awkward.

"You be the best darn Keyblade master there ever was 'kay? Don't ever stop fighting for those hearts. And treat Xion like a princess because if you don't I WILL find some way to come and kill you for it!"

He gulped and laughed nervously, but smiled too. I thumped him on the shoulder,

"Take care."

Finally there was Axel. Before I had a chance to say anything, he blurted,

"Come with us!"

I looked up at him sadly.

"You know I can't do that. I've got a family here and friends too. My whole life is here. I can't just give all that up. And I never got a chance to say this but… I'm sorry."

"Roxas and Xion already explained your little plan to me; no need to apologize. I don't think anything woulda made saying good-bye any easier."

"I know. Please find out what Xemnas is up to and stop him. If anyone can do it; it's you Spiky McRedhead."

He gave me a sad smile, not at all like his usual cocky smirk. We hugged quickly but the message was sent: We'd all miss each other like crazy. Lexi checked the time.

"You guys have to leave at noon right? Kennedie's dad's watch must be off, because as far as I can tell, you guys still have five minutes."

"'Kay" Axel responded.

"You know, a small part of me _does_ wish I could come with you guys. But I know it's not possible." I said, my voice thick with tears I wouldn't let flow.

Nobody said anything in response. It didn't warrant one. I was just thinking out loud.

"_Anything is possible if you believe!"_ A voice said. It wasn't in our room, but I could tell everyone heard it. It was in our heads!

"Okay Voice with the corny inspirational comments; what do you propose we do then?" I asked irritably. Based on Axel's facial expressions, the Voice was just talking to him alone.

"Aha!" he cried.

"What? What is it?" Lexi and I asked.

"So here's the deal…"


	18. Epilogue

I came home from the hospital that evening. My whole family and a bunch of my friends threw me a Welcome Home party. It was fun, but I grew tired quickly, so my parents cleared everyone out and allowed me to get some much needed rest. I took a week off school to get fully recuperated and attend daily physiotherapy. Soon I was back to normal. My family never did find out what actually happened with the Heartless. Lexi helped me get caught up on my schoolwork and soon my life was as if Roxas, Xion, and Axel had never been in it. Every night, I lay awake until midnight, waiting. I wouldn't forget. I promised him I wouldn't and he did the same. But after a month, I was losing hope. One night, just like the rest, I lay in bed staring up at the ceiling. Waiting. Then, I heard a knock. A barely detectable _tap, tap, tap_ on my window. Sitting bolt upright in my bed, I grinned madly back at the smirking face and emerald eyes in the window. I waved him away and mouthed,

"I will be right there, one sec."

With a nod, and a flourish of black material, the face disappeared from my window. Quietly, ever so quietly, I got up and padded over to my closet.

I pulled open the door and put on my cloak.

The End


End file.
